DEATHRACE IS COMING!

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The Tuskers, in association with EVEOGANDA, are pleased to announce plans for an all-new DEATHRACE to be held in March 2013!!

This DR will be bigger and badder and meaner than ever before! We plan on transversing the breadth of New Eden at ludicrous speed with thousands of pilots, gate camps, smart-bombing obstacles and god knows what else along the way! For the lucky few that survive, the rewards will be great and the honor will last eternally.

Planning is underway. More details will be announced in the coming weeks. But we are looking for sponsors and prize donations. The DR Promotional material has a lot of room for logos and we'd love to add yours! While the Tuskers are sponsoring the event and supporting it with coordination and pilot support, we need your help to make this the event of the year!

Contact Rixx Javix at rixxjavix@gmail.com if you'd be interested in donating or helping to support the event in any way. We need to get the word out and everyone can help with that mission!

More details will be coming soon, but I wanted to get this announced as soon as possible.

A Good Day

Eve gives and Eve takes away. The longer you play the more you realize the cycles and rythme of this game we play. One minute you can't get a fight and the next the fights are up to your chin. Yesterday was one such day for me. And I had no time to play!

I had maybe an hour total to play and that hour was stretched out over about 8 different sessions during the day and evening. But, as I always do, I tried to make the most of what I did have. No whining here. Log-in, undock and try to cause trouble.

So I undocked in my Condor and noticed an Imperial Navy Slicer on my overview in local. Now the Condor would be a good choice certainly, but I always try ( when possible ) to get something more "equal" to the task. So I docked up quickly and grabbed my own IN Slicer. Slicer Vs Slicer should be a good fight.

I chased him around for a bit, there was also a Merlin around that I was trying to catch, and eventually we found ourselves at the Sun together. Now, when two Slicers fight each other it goes like this - Zip Whip BOOM!! About that fast. These ships are so fast and fragile that the fight is purely instinctual, no time for grand schemes and plans. Mostly you are concentrating on managing your ship and either you or the other guy explodes at some point. Luckily the other guy exploded. Good fight. We talked a bit afterwards and I tried to give some advice. But honestly, not much to say. He fought well and his ship exploded. Sometimes it just happens.

I docked up and decided to take my Vengeance for a roam. When I undocked there were a bunch of ships in local, so I started warping around trying to catch someone. I haven't flown the Veng in awhile so I didn't notice the missiles were already at about 45% damage. Eventually I found a Tristan at one of the Plexes sitting on the Accel Gate, so I engaged and we had at it. I like the Tristan, it is a solid frigate, but no match for my Veng. While I was finishing him off a Wolf landed and we started going at it. He was hitting me pretty hard so I overheated my racks and dove into him. I'd have killed him I think, but my missiles stopped working! I had burned them out. Luckily the Wolf wasn't able to break my tank, so I aligned out and just burned away from him.

I repaired my Veng and decided to switch to the Condor again. Local had spiked again and I thought we might have a new wave of FW pilots in local. Sure enough, Cormorant in a FW Plex thingie. Cormorants have no chance against my Condor, so that was an easy kill.

I don't remember why I switched to my Daredevil, but apparently I did. An Algos appeared. I had never fought one of those in a DD before, so I looked forward to giving it a try. Sadly, the next Algos wasn't well fit at all. He went boom. So I kilt his pod as well. ( Mostly I'd been letting pods go, good fights deserve it in my opinion. )

During the course of some of this an Ishtar had been flying around at various times. I'd tried on several attempts to locate him, but he wasn't having any of it. Later on in the day Easy had managed to find him running a mission, so he jumped in his Drake and I decided to take one of my Canes - hadn't flown that ship in a long time. We managed to miss the Ishtar and get spanked by our new CEO, although to be fair, it was him who really got spanked.

On the way back to the station I noticed a Venture in one of the belts. I certainly didn't have enough points on the Cane to tackle a Venture, but nothing ventured nothing gained. Turns out I didn't need the points at all, as the Cane one-shotted the poor sodden bastard. I felt so bad I let his pod go.

Back into the Condor and I find two ships in one of the belts. An Atron and a Venture. Since I really didn't have enough points for the Venture I decided to take the Atron out. He popped so quickly that the Venture forgot to run away, so I kilt him as well.

The last kill of the day was just blind luck. A Eve Uni pilot in local had been warping around asking for a 1v1 ( I didn't know this when I logged back in ) and I was the one that found him.  Just ahead of Bendy. Sorry buddy.

So 10-0 on the day. Three of which were genuinely good fights, the rest borderline slaughter. Although the caveat as always, you don't know that going in - only coming out. ( except for the Ventures of course, although they can just run off! )

Tomorrow I'll probably lose 4 ships.

Black Ooops

I've always believed that you should be able to laugh at yourself. Let's face it, you are pretty much an idiot most of the time. So being able to realize that, laugh and move on is kind of important. Sometimes things just don't work out and you end up jumping onto a Navitas.*

Oh it gets worse.

So yesterday I had some precious time to play Eve and instead of spending it running around getting into some good fights, I joined in on a spur of the moment Black Ops opportunity with some of my fellow Tuskers. I won't mention our intended target, mostly because it doesn't matter, but it was a target worthy of the effort. We got a handful of Bombers together, some support ships and a Panther and waited. We were all thinking it should be over rather quickly.

And we waited. And then waited some more. ( It took so long we took a break to kill this Tengu )

Sometimes even the dumbest of targets doesn't do what they are supposed to do. And our scouts were out and about trying to find us something to go for in the meantime. Spread out and see what happens. This went on for awhile with very little result. Eventually some members of our team wandered home.

A quick note about time. It is against you. At first everyone is sharp, alert and ready to go. But the more time that passes, the more time that passes. It is the Law of Diminishing Returns. People start to get dumb and there is nothing you can do about it. Until finally, the ideas, plans and schemes flying around, start to sound legit.

Case in point. One of our scouts landed in a nearby system. Lots of ships in this system including a potentially shiny one. But no one, despite some well-played Noob like actions on the part of our scout, would engage him. So finally he says, "One of them is in a Navitas in a belt." (Remember the Law of Diminishing Returns?) Instead of sounding like a waste of time, this sounded like a good idea. Engage the Navitas and the others will come to help him. At least we'll get a fight out of it.

So far so good. Our Scout engages, the Navitas engages and then a Rokh lands nearby! Certainly, the whole system will soon be coming to the aid of the Navitas. The order is given and we all jump.

Some of those support ships that went with us are things like an Arazu and Rapier, known far and wide as ships with points on them. Plus our Scout right? Plus all the Bombers had points. That's a lot of pointy things. I just wanted to mention that.

So we all land and start killing the poor Navitas. Meanwhile, the Rokh is about 75k away and burning like a mofo. So far no one else has arrived. The Arazu is going after the Rokh and I start burning in that direction, I think most of us did. Surely the Navitas will pop rather...

Uh... the Navitas warped off.

And then, well this isn't easy to say, but the Rokh did also.

Oh, we did get one kill. Our poor scout paid with his life. ( He actually asked for it, no one wants to hang around with the Cyno still going after that showing! )

Needless to say we returned to Hevrice and laughed a lot on Comms for the rest of the day. Heck, I'm still laughing.



We all play for good fights. For challenging encounters. The chance to prove ourselves against a foe in our ships. But, in my opinion, the best times I've had in Eve have been moments like these. Not that I want them to happen again any time soon, but if you've played Eve for any length of time with a group of other people - then I think you know what I mean.

(*a few facts have been altered to protect certain information from becoming public)

Tuskers Are Recruiting

Have you ever imagined flying the space-lanes with and testing your mettle amongst the greatest Pirate PvP Corporation in Eve? ( Ranked #1 on BattleClinic btw ) If you have, then now is the time to finally act. The Tuskers don't open recruitment very often and we are currently looking for 10 dangerous, self-motivated and determined pilots to join our ranks.

You can read all about the details on this forum post.

That post does a great job of spelling out the details and pointing you in the right direction, so I won't belabor the point. What I will say is this, if you want to up your game and learn from the best, there really is only one place to do that. I've never been a part of a group of pilots that think more about tactics, ship fittings and gang actions than this group of pilots does. It is seriously 95% of our forum space.

I would recommend the Tuskers for anyone, young or experienced, that feels they are ready. For me joining the Tuskers was about finally focusing on my own abilities as a pilot and leaving behind the Null Sec Alliance politics and the chores of running my own Corporation. After three years of that, I was ready to give my own flying some much needed attention. Everyone comes for their own reasons and those are as varied as the stars in New Eden.

But you know when you are ready.

Are you?

OH NOES!!!

DO NOT click to embiggen this please!!

Apparently back on June 6th, 2009 I lost my mind and became temporarily insane!! As the above "just discovered" screenshot proves, on that day I fitted a Battleship of the Line - in this case a Caldari Rokh - with mining lasers and cargo expanders and went... gulp, mining in it.

I may never recover my dignity. What? Oh yeah, right, I never had any dignity.

Somehow this entire brief episode is made all the worse by the fact that Angor Mau joined me in his mining laser enhanced Dominix.

Seriously though, we did it as a joke and this was the ONLY time it ever happened. I can still remember thinking, "I hope to God we don't get killed in these things!" Which we luckily managed to avoid. And the whole thing would've been forgotten if I hadn't just posted this.

Be gentle.

PS: Remember when Invul Fields made "halo" effects around your ship? I always liked that effect.

Nerf Your Words

One of the biggest mistakes young players, or those just getting into PvP for the first time, make is a tendency to think highly of themselves. To cloak their own insecurities in a cloud of bluster, harsh language, witty comebacks and threats. I know this happens for two reasons.

1) I used to do it myself ( Go watch this video, it is amazing! )
2) People do it to me all the time.

Just yesterday I exploded a Atron in Hevrice and the pilot asked for a convo afterwards. It started out nice enough, How did you find me? ( You were at one of only three choices on that side of the system, it wasn't hard ) I tried to be nice and helpful, but the conversation continued to escalate. My bounty blinked and 10m isk was added. Then he asked me if my Condor could kill a Myrm. ( Which is always a funny question in Eve. Yes a Condor can kill a Myrm, if it is fit as badly as the Atron you were just flying!! ) But I didn't say that. I told him that in certain situations, yes a Condor could do it, but generally you wouldn't attack a Myrm in a Condor.

"Good, I'm going to bring a BC or BS back and kill you with it."

Fine. That would be great. But he had left chat by then of course. This is just one example of hundreds. And while the inclination is obvious, you suck and all you have are words. I suggest a different tactic.

Convo me. Get some advice. Say thanks and then come back in another ship and try to kill me with it. If you lose again you won't look like such a big idiot and if, by some chance, you actually do kill me... well then you'll have something real to talk about.

You might even get some respect. Instead of becoming the laughing stock of Corp Chat, Twitter and used as an example on an extremely popular and well-written blog.

Nerf yourself.

Words in Eve are just as important as those missiles on your ship. Words are a weapon of great power. Learn to use them in your own favor. Words can be used, and have been, to bring down great Alliances, destroy careers, and cast a shadow over pilots and the choices they make. Words alone can do these things. Words are what the Meta of Eve is built upon.

Bluster? Arrogance? Not needed really. You are too easily tested in this game. I can see your killboard. I can see how long you've been playing, where you've been and who you associate with. Puffing yourself up in local, in chat, or anywhere else isn't going to help your cause. The only thing that does help is blowing up the other guy. When he is dead, exploded and his wreckage litters the vacuum, you've said all that needs to be said. The only important words are those spoken by your guns and delivered on the smoke of your missiles.

And then, watch out. You can now speak with both your words and your actions. And then you have become a force to be reckoned with. Then... you are ready to be terrible!

Say what?

Think of it this way. The worse your enemies think you are, the more terrible you appear, the more they will under-estimate you. It is, when you finally come to this understanding, that Eve really starts to come alive. When all the aspects of the game merge into one long play, one long manipulation of reality. When you are your own meta. And you finally dictate the conversation, even when the other guy thinks he does.

There are threads running right now that started years ago. Invisible threads. And they were planted just for the fun of it.

The lesson is simple. Words are one of your weapons. Use them to your advantage, not to your detriment. They can help you just as much as training for T2 weapon systems.

Trust me.

My Endorsement for CSM8

I've made my decision and, unless something horrible happens to make me change it, I am supporting the election of Marc Scaurus to the Council of Stellar Management 8.

Not only is Marc a former Tusker but we also flew together in my former Alliance "Burn Away" when Marc was in Sinners and a part of our Alliance. We got the chance to fly together even before they joined the Alliance and got to know each other pretty well during that time. Marc was always a daring and courageous pilot and I respected his opinion and experience. He was instrumental in the early success of the Alliance.

I also could have chosen any number of people to take over the Eve Blog Pack when it looked like I might have to quit Eve early last year, but I reached out to Marc first. I believe that says a lot about how I feel, given that the EPB was handed to me by the Blogfather CrazyKinux himself.

And while Marc and I haven't always seen eye-to-eye, our recent Goon arguments among the most public, I personally never believed those issues changed anything between us personally. And while I stand by my concerns regarding Goons in general and (the one who won't be named), I can also separate the people from the game. And Marc has made it clear that he will be leaving that organization.

Not only will Marc represent the interests of Low-Sec, but he will also help to represent all of New Eden. And I believe that is a critical and important distinction. We've seen far to many candidates over the years with agendas, or limited experience, or power blocs to answer to. And we've also seen what I believe to be great CSM members who are able to communicate and address concerns across the board, while certainly not forgetting who got them there. ( Hans! )

So I will be supporting Marc in his efforts to be elected to CSM8.

And I would appreciate it if you would as well.

1v1 EVE COMIC #54

Click to embiggen!

I know it has been awhile since the last 1v1 EVE COMIC of awesomeness, but we here at Eveoganda World HQ are striving to return to a more regular schedule.

Enjoy and remember ALL 1v1 EVE COMICS are archived for your reading pleasure. All stinking 54 of 'em.

UPDATE: I made a mistake. This is actually 1v1 EVE COMIC #55, number 54 appeared back in December and wasn't added to the archive. Not that anyone but me cares about such things, but I do try to run a tight ship around here.

My POS

Click to embiggen!!

The above screen shot was taken on July 9th, 2009 in PI5-39 in Providence. That is the Rixx Javix POS. The one and only Player Owned Structure that I have ever had in Eve. It only lived for four days before it was taken down for transport to hi-sec, lost in a transport accident along the way. For which I still haven't forgiven those responsible. ( Not really, but it's more fun to say that.)

Good grief that is really starting to be a long time ago!

I think I'll start posting more of these glimpses into the past every so often.

Oh, I just found this one. Here I am turning the POS into a Deathstar. lol. Kickin' it like a Carebear!!

Click to embiggen!

If you read the comments in local on that one you can see the concern regarding "chaining" the rats... does that even still work?

The Good, The Bad and the Ugly

Eve giveth and Eve taketh away. The past week or so has been a relatively rough patch for your friendly neighborhood blogging Pirate. Ups and downs and some frowns. As always, only the truth from my perspective.

Let's go.

GOOD
Long-time readers may recognize Angor Mau from my Lucifer's Hammer days. He has started playing again and the other day we decided to take out two Corax and see what the ship could do. I'm still not convinced it is a great solo ship, but in tandem it can do extremely well.

BAD
One of the dangers of having so many ships in your hanger is keeping their fits up to date. I picked a Slasher to fight this guy in because that was what he was flying, but sadly I hadn't updated the fit since the FW explosion. He had. The fight went down to the wire but the last second explosion was mine. Keep your fits updated.

UGLY, UGLY
Yeah, remember that dude from the one above? I fought him three times and lost all three. Granted, I started fighting him because he was an applicant to the Tuskers ( since admitted btw ) and I wanted to test some new fits. I don't like the Executioner and wanted to test it out. My feelings about the ship confirmed I brought out the Condor, a ship that should never, ever lose to a Slasher imo. ( At least, I've never previously lost to one) And here is the lesson. Never, ever look away from the screen when preparing to engage. When we landed I thought he was 75k away, but he was actually 54k away. I looked away for a moment after I had set my approach vector. When I looked back he was on top of me. Duh.

GOOD, VERY GOOD
So I jump into Hev yesterday to the news that there is a Tengu and a friggin' Machariel missioning out in our space! A quick fleet is formed up and away we go. Now, I don't run missions, but I would think that a gang landing in one room on your boosting Tengu(?) would alert your bling-fitted Machariel in the OTHER room to run away. Not so apparently. We made quick work of the Tengu and had time for our own Mach to jump into the next room and point the Mach. Eve! You are such a fickle little bitch.

A side note, apparently my Mic wasn't working yesterday. The thing is, I didn't know this! I spent a lot of time talking and reporting intel... that no one heard. The worst moment was the Tengu kill. No one except me bookmarked the wreck. But when I reported that fact on Comms...well, no one seemed to care. lolz. Luckily, someone on the team managed to find the wreck anyway. Pro baby.

BAD
To this moment I have no idea how I lost this fight. I had fought the guy moments earlier in Jov and had pwned, so much so that he used his ecm drones to escape. For some reason he decided to come back and fight me again, so kudos to him for that! Apparently he knew something I didn't.

UGLY, UGLY
I don't know how you fly, but when a fellow Tusker says warp to a belt I warp to the belt. I had just undocked in my Caracal to test out the new fit, when someone said warp to belt on Comms. The belt wasn't even on d-scan so I had no idea what I was jumping into. It isn't every day you see a Geddon and a Prophecy in a belt in Hevrice. And btw, the test on the Caracal went extremely well. I'm liking that ship now.

GOOD
I always appreciate those that stand and fight. So this pilot deserves all the credit in the world for standing up and fighting. It was a good fight and I spent a good fifteen or twenty minutes afterwards trying to help and answer questions. Well done.


Considering I had very little play-time during the past week or so, this isn't as horrible a run as it started out to be. Anyone who has played Eve for anytime understands how fickle she can be, and no one more so than me.

Onward and upward.

Absurdities

Eve is full of them. I often mock them right here on Eveoganda. Others do as well. It might be hard to believe, but this is all done out of love for the universe of Eve Online. It isn't intended to destroy or make people stop playing, it is actually the opposite intent. We believe in our game so much, that we feel it can withstand pointing out its naughty bits in public.

Look, Eve doesn't have any clothes on!!

Most recently my good friend and fellow blogger Stan has written several stories based around the absurdities that we take for granted in Eve. I highly recommend them. I've certainly written more than my fair share of them over the years right here, but you'll have to search the archives yourself. That isn't what this post is about.

There a lot of things we take for granted. Most of which really have no true bearing on game play. From our ships floating in the docking hanger to the confined reality of the CQ, there are "game" based inconsistencies everywhere you look. As I said however, most don't impact game play because they are universal.

But if I had to name one singular inconsistency that does actually impact game play, one singular thing about Eve that drives the logical mind a bit loopie, that doesn't make ANY sense at all... I'd be forced to think about windows. Not chat windows, or UI windows, but real honest to goodness windows made out of glass.

When you are docked in a station and supposedly sitting comfortably in your CQ, or perhaps in your pod waiting to undock ( who really knows ) you can't see outside!! Despite the obvious observable fact that most stations have hundreds of thousands of windows. I know this because I can see them from the outside. In fact, some stations are little more than giant windows. Some even have gigantic greenhouse windows that cover almost the entire station.

But you can't look out.

Talk about absurd. This is the penultimate absurdity within Eve. It is Monty Python level silliness.

Oh sure, you have the local count and you can tell there are 37 pilots in local, but which ones are right outside? You have no idea. Not a clue. Is it clear out there? Or are all 37 pilots currently camping you in with insta-locking Arty Pests?!? Undock and find out.

Thing is, like most of these things, I'm actually perfectly fine with the system as it exists. But I also imagine a solution that isn't hard to implement and that would bring new life to a place in Eve I try hard to never, ever visit, the Captain's Quarters.

Y'know that giant screen down there? The one that takes up an entire wall ( I'm working solely on memory here ), what if one of its functions was to show a station schematic with little colored dots showing the ships currently outside or waiting to dock in the station? Wouldn't that be a wonder? Or, even more crazy, a docking camera that showed you a view of the docking section of the station... before you decide to undock?

I know its crazy talk. And, as you probably guessed, I'm no fan of docking station games. They do serve a purpose from time to time, but seriously I'm willing to forget some elements in order to enhance others. And if it meant the end of station camping, or at least a serious Nerf to same, then it would be worth it.

What say you gentle reader?

BB44.2: Encounter Based Local

For a full archive of Blog Banter #44 submissions, please visit this link and be prepared for a lot of reading.

I've had a chance to read all of the submissions regarding the newly resurgent call for altering, modifying, removing, tinkering, needlessly complicating and otherwise mucking around with the Local mechanic in Eve. Wow. An amazing amount of thought and effort and opinion has been generated and each concept is well-considered and developed. Well done.

I was compelled to return to the subject because it is an important one. If many of these proposals are actually implemented I will be forced to quit playing and I don't really want that to happen. That would suck.

So, instead of covering old ground again, this time I'm going to make my own proposal. A proposal that doesn't add needless complications to an already complicated game. A proposal that isn't based on skills, that doesn't favor the rich and powerful, and that doesn't mimic what already exists in WH Space. And, most importantly, a proposal that can be implemented from CCP with minimal effort. Which is important. There are limited resources.

I call it Encounter Based Local.

First of all, Local Chat and Local Intel are separated from each other. Both become individual window panes, customizable and moveable like any other window pane. Local Chat becomes a "talk and seen" channel, you talk in it and you appear in it. Local Chat doesn't contain any Avatars, it is simply a talk channel. Straight forward and simple.

Local Intel remains similar to the current Local Channel but with significant, yet subtle, differences.

Here is how the Local Intel window looks when I enter a new system. You can see I have it customized into a two-column configuration:

Click to embiggen

Local displays all the avatars of those pilots currently in local, but no other information. (If they are in your fleet or gang they would have the purple square next to their name.) In addition, local no longer does math for you and no longer displays a running total of local inhabitants.

The status of local pilots is determined by "encounters" only and is no longer a function of CONCORD or gates or any other voodoo. It is determined by pilots now. You have to find out yourself.

How do you do that?

1) D-Scan - Once a pilot is pinged by d-scan his status is displayed in the channel.
2) On Grid - Once a pilot lands on grid with you, his status is displayed in the channel.
3) Probe - Once pinged by a probe, status is displayed.
4) Get Info - That still works the same way.

Any action that uncovers another pilot in local by you, or someone in fleet with you, reveals that pilots status. But only to you individually, or those in your fleet. Not to anyone else in local.

(Except for Crimewatch activities, Crimewatch activities continue to be broadcast and delivered the same as they are now. So engaging in criminal activity comes with a much higher price now, since you will be revealing yourself to everyone in local without them having to find you!)

Local is a "find and forget" system. Once a pilot leaves local his encounter information with you is forgotten and once more he fades into space, forcing you to encounter him again or use your brain and remember his name.

I am also recommending the following change:

Click to embiggen

See those grayed out avatars? You know what's special about them? They are docked!

Now we finally have a window when we are in station. Which also serves to let us know who in system is docked up. Since they cannot be "encountered" while docked, they are identified as such. This benefits both those docked and undocked. Those in station can now see who is not in station and vice versa. Is that guy that chased you still out in space, or is he docked now?

So there you have it. Simple, easy and useful. You can still tell that there are pilots in local, but are they friend or foe? Are they together or alone? Are they Militia? Are they enemies? It is now up to you to find out for yourself.

This is a change that I think CCP can afford to make. It delivers a form of delayed-local for those that have been calling for that change. It doesn't favor the attacker or the defender, since both are in the dark until they take some action to change their status - using d-scan for example. Cloaking continues to be the best way to avoid being seen, until you de-cloak and someone pings you of course.

It also encourages an increase in Social Awareness within Eve. Remembering names could become your best tool against those you fight often. Hey, I know that Rixx Javix fella!!

It also keeps local non-skill based and universal for everyone - noob or veteran. And I believe that is the most important thing of all. But it also makes Local a more active, user-participated system without going all the way towards adding additional content. This system needs NO ADDITIONAL CONTENT from CCP. Just some adjustments to two windows.

So what are your thoughts?

[ UPDATE: Despite my best efforts to read every single post about this topic it appears one slipped thru my fingers. It is, of course, one that shares many similarities to my own proposal. Azalean Ladder makes many of the same points and while our proposals are different, they are also fundamentally the same for all intents and purposes. Brilliant minds think alike.]

Have a Cold One on me

There really is a Tusker Beer. This version was done by me on a whim the other day and posted on Tusker forums.

I didn't get the chance to play Eve much at all this week, so I am going to crack open some ice cold beer tonight and drown my sorrows. So I thought I'd share.

Enjoy your weekend.

BB44: Change Local and I'll Quit

"The local chat channel provides EVE players with an instant source of intel of who is in the system. With a quick glance you can tell who is in system and what your standings are to them. War targets, hated enemies, friends and corp mates all stand out clearly. Is this right? Should we have access to this intel for free with no work or effort? Should the Local chat channel even exist? Should normal space be more like wormhole space where the Local channel appears empty until someone speaks?"


There has been a lot of talk lately about changing the way the local channel works in Eve Online. Without being overly dramatic (!) let me be clear right up front - if any of the myriad changes currently on the table are implemented - I will quit playing Eve.

Take a moment to see things from my perspective. 75% of the time I fly in New Eden, I fly alone. I don't have an Alt. I don't use a mysterious T3 Booster, or a prober, or anything else - it is just me in space. Doing it the hard way. In any given hour of precious play-time I may fly thru 30+ systems in a row looking for a good fight. If I find a juicy Tengu running a Mission he is perfectly safe from me, because I have no way of finding him! That, dear reader, is the predominate play-style of which I participate in this universe.

Let me be even more specific. I am -10. I am a Tusker. Often when I pop up in local it isn't unusual to see a system with 10+ people in it EMPTY OUT. They run, they dock, or they otherwise hide somewhere in a safe spot or a POS. But Rixx, wouldn't a delayed local help you with that? If you only think about things for five seconds you might be right. But let's assume for a moment that you take a tad longer to think about things before deciding to bury your opinion in concrete and refuse to change, shall we?

I arrive in a system and have no idea if anyone is there? You know what I do in situations like that? I warp to the next gate and leave! Oh but wait, it turns out that there were people in local after all, and in fact they happen to be camping the Gate I just warped to!! And they have a shit-ton of T3 boosted lock wizards and Alpha Strike Pests!! Well dang, that was fun. Maybe I'll log in again... like never!

There HAS to be something in Eve that works the same FOR ALL PLAYERS. For first day noobs and hardened Vets. We have to have something that is universally the same for every single player. How hard is that to understand? It isn't based on skills, it isn't based on how many accounts you can afford, it isn't based on how many friends you have ( or dont have ), we HAVE to have something that is universally consistent to everyone. And Local, as messed up and lore breaking and common sense bending as it is - is it. Period. Case over.

Slow it down. Make it dependent on skills. Give it some sort of dopey probe based bullshit that doesn't make a hair of sense and I promise you I will not hesitate to stop playing your suddenly dumb game.

And yes I am purposely trying my best to blow this all out of proportion so someone will listen. This isn't hard. Local is the only democratic universally available intel system in the entire game. It isn't arbitrary, it is crucial.

Now Local Chat is another matter. Please feel free to muck about with that feature. I personally don't use it much anyway, other than to offer a "gf" and to goad my enemies from time to time. ( Don't tell the other Tuskers about that, they tend to frown on local chat. Although my efforts often lead to fights, which they do like.)

To those that say that local benefits the aggressor more than the defender... uh, well I have to say I wonder what game you've been playing? Even back when I was a stoopid young player in Null Space watching for local spikes was a constant activity. We used to kill rats in belts back in those days and we'd all run and hide in station when -A- came to kill us. And then we'd jump into other ships and go and try to kill them. It was fun.

Remember that part up there when I said people run away? Or they don't. But at the very least they have that chance. Remove or change local and that chance is gone.


------------------------------- Part Two -----------------------------

I love Wormholes and I totally respect those that live in them.

Back when WHs were first introduced we ( my mates and I at the time ) had a big conversation regarding the lack of local in WH Space. I wish I still had the logs to that chatter, but I can still remember the basics. I mostly remember them because that very same week this topic hit Eve pretty hard and swept thru the forums. It may have even hit the blogs, but back then I didn't even know they existed yet.

The call was basic and predictable. Suddenly everyone was clamoring for local to be removed from Null. Wouldn't that be neat? At the time, as a member of carebear based Providence, we were pretty much sold on the idea. Yes, that might work. During that conversation we were quickly and finally dissuaded from that belief using much the same arguments that I did up above.

But WH life has changed people's perspective. And while I love WH space as much as the next guy, local being missing in there is part of its charm. It is spooky space. Dangerous space. That's cool. But you know what? We never, ever leave the WH entrance without a prober. Which means I never, ever go into a WH alone. Which means 75% of the time I play Eve, I don't go into WHs.

Spread that kind of thinking out to the rest of us? No thanks.


Can Local be better? Maybe. I'm open to ideas. CCP said they are looking at separating Local and Local Chat into different things. I support that. But let's not get carried away here. Calm down and think about it for a few minutes.

Whatever you change local to be it must remain:

1) Skill Independent
2) Universal to all players individually
3) Immediate
4) Accurate
5) Constantly updated

Which is what we have now.


For other people's thoughts and much more reading, go on over to Stan's house and ask him for some books.

Gooder Eve: The Harvester Class

[ Gooder Eve is a series of on-going articles that examine ways in which Eve can be made Gooder.  Some are serious, some are not, but all are intended to create debate, dialogue, and discussion.  So enjoy! ]

As you all know by now, I am not an industrialist, miner, misson-runner, or anything other than a Pirate. And while that might make labeling me easier, it doesn't mean that I don't understand or think about other play-styles in Eve. For one thing, knowing how and why other people do things does make it easier to catch and destroy them from doing those things.

But driving into work today I was thinking about a lot of things. The Moon issues in Null Space, the return on mining, resources, building things, increased prices, Cap ship re-balancing, and other issues all swirling around in my head... when suddenly this idea popped in there.

Whenever this happens my first inclination is to kill it dead. I've learned long ago that if an idea can't survive this intense desire I have, then it wasn't a good idea in the first place. It survived and kept rattling around in my head all day.

So here it is plain and simple. Written as an imaginary Press Release from CCP:

August 2013: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CCP is proud to announce the introduction of an entirely new class of Capital Ship to EVE Online - The Harvester Capital Class. These mammoth refineries have been developed by the four Empire's of New Eden to provide a unique and newly developed service to our pilots. Each one incorporates a freshly researched ability to mine the Solar atmosphere of system stars - breaking down the ejecta by a complex and strange science process into its component parts - providing unique and rare elements previously only available thru Moon Harvesting in distant Null Space Regions. And while these new Harvester Class ships cannot produce the volume of distant Moon Harvesters, they do produce a higher quality result. We believe this will open up entirely new and potentially profitable options for hi-sec and low-sec mining operations on a scale unheard of in New Eden's history.

As I said, I'm no expert on this subject. But experts aren't the ones that usually come up with new ideas either, new ideas happen to be something I am an expert at. Not just in Eve.

So I'll leave the yelling and screaming to the experts who probably already know why this is a bad idea. But maybe, as is often the case, one idea leads to another which ultimately leads us to a gooder idea.

The point of these Gooder Eve posts has never been about being "right or wrong" but they have always been about starting a conversation and throwing spaghetti against the wall and seeing what sticks.

I thought Capital Class, but they could be BS Class. Giant Ram-Scoop like industrial ships parked in orbit around Stars, gathering the ejecta and transforming it into much needed ( and balancing! ) minerals.

Sounded gooder to me. What are your thoughts?

Destroy All Things: Part Two: Deep Bits

Part One.

In part one of this series I took a good hard look at the moral foundation of being a scum-sucking Pirate in Eve. In this part I'll be taking a solid think about the philosophical questions that arise from such a stance.

Let's start with a biggie - killing Noobs. In your travels as a Pirate you will often encounter those that are extremely younger than you are. Sometimes they will even be "New Players". That Corax in the belt might be a eight year old player or he may have just started a month ago.

We've already established that the Destroy All Things play-style allows us the freedom to destroy the enemy no matter his age, country of origin or religious affiliations. However, as proponents of Eve and even more so as a Blogger that promotes said MMO, we'd also like to encourage more people to play. Will destroying a young players ship cause him to quit playing? We don't want that to happen. And so arises the basic conundrum of the Destroy All Things play-style.

The weight of history is against the young player. No one cut me any slack when I was first starting out. Heck, I was slaughtered mercilessly in those days. Why should I cut someone some slack now? That wouldn't be fair!

Not to mention that they are kinda asking for it. I mean, they are out in space in Low-Sec! Not attacking them would certainly send the wrong message and alter the perception of Low-Sec for generations to come. I can't allow myself to be party to that betrayal.

So here is how I've landed. Your own answers may vary. I'm going to try and destroy the enemy, I have to based on what has been established. Goodness knows he may be bait, he may be an eight year old players alt, he may have a covert cyno attached, or any number of other variables. If he truly is a young player then I will offer to talk to him afterwards and give some good solid advice.

That effort typically goes about 50/50 in my own experience. Some players are just angry or bitter about the experience and despite my best efforts refuse to take or listen to any advice. To those I offer a GF in local and send their pods home the hard way. To the rest they get the chance to talk to me and ask me anything they want. If possible, their pods are saved and free to pod-express home as reward for being decent human beings. And potential good-fights somewhere down the road.

This makes me feel better about being a scum-sucking pirate.

On a grander scale Pirates serve a counter-balance service to all of New Eden. Without us the system would collapse upon itself. Industrialist would have nothing to build. Miners wouldn't need to mine. New Eden would become stable and boring. There'd be no buffer zone between Null Space and Hi-Sec, and if you think that would be a good thing you seriously need to think again.

Pirates are the Sharks of New Eden. We cull the weak, the stupid, the incompetent and the mistake prone. We make the non-Pirates stronger. Maybe we are more like Wolves actually. We keep the Deer alert and fast of foot. Whichever analogy works better, that is the service that Pirates perform. New Eden would be a happy, comfortable and extremely boring place without us.

And no matter to which degree a Pirate chooses to pursue his own play-style, from honor bound Tusker to blobby-focused Cap dropping neighbors, the choice is buried deep in a necessary evil that promotes ALL other play-styles in Eve.

And that knowledge keeps even the worst Pirate warm at night.

In our next installment we'll take a look at the financial consequences of the Pirate play-style.

The Good, The Bad and the Ugly

Welcome to a new regular feature here on Eveoganda. I finally decided to wrap the wrap-ups into a common theme, so every so often I'll take a look back at the events of the past few days and summarize them for you. Good fights, Bad fights and the downright ugly things that happen in Eve.

GOOD
While this killmail looks a bit like a gank it was actually far from it. I'd been chasing this Arbi around for awhile in system and finally caught him in one of the belts. The significance for me was what I was flying. I'd been trying for almost three days to get a fight in my new Talwar without success. I was anxious to see how the ship would do. So I got point and Kmang in his Condor came over to help me hold point while I killed his drones. I had to warp off, and by this point on comms the rest of the Tuskers smelled blood. I warped off to the Sun, meaning to dock afterwards and get some repairs since I was on fire. Kmang lost point and the Arbi warped off... to the Sun!! Yeah, he landed right on top of me! So, on fire and deep into structure, I got point once more and then everyone showed up to finish the job. Robert got a little carried away with the Proteus.

BAD
Right off the bat, missioning in Hevrice isn't the world's best idea. There are Tuskers everywhere! Not watching d-scan for probes and then dual tanking a Brutix are also not genius moves. I was in my Comet for this one because we'd been chasing a Comet earlier. That's how I roll. Good kill, but bad decisions on the target's part.

UGLY
Yeah I lost my Sacrilege yesterday and it wasn't pretty. Chased a Caracal to a station in system and engaged him, trying to pop him before he docked. ( I didn't ) When this do-gooder Tengu pilot landed and pointed me. I had no choice but to go for it. In a normal situation I feel confident this one would go under the "good" category, this wasn't a normal situation and the Sentry Guns proved to be more than the ship could handle with the Tengu shooting me. The Tengu only did 6k damage.

GOOD
Yes I'm putting a ship loss into the good column and for good reason. I almost solo'd a Vexor in a Condor!! I've done it before but so much of the success of doing it remains on both pilots, how the ships are fit and the skill of the fight. Killing a Vexor with a Condor means riding the razor's edge and you'll both probably end up on fire. This was an epic fight and came down to the wire. My mistake was not shooting his drones earlier. But three rounds of missiles and three rounds of ASB charges and they finally caught me during the last re-load. Good fight.

UGLY
Even Tuskers lose their patience. And while this chase started off with us in Frigates, several attempts to point a double stabbed ship can leave you rather angry. So when said ship decides to dock up, well can you really blame us?

GOOD
This one starts off with another Condor loss, but it is always the story and not the killmail. I found a Cormorant, Comet and Merlin outside an Acceleration Gate in system. I warped in to see what they were doing and decided this might be a great opportunity to get three really nice kills. I wanted to get the Comet first, but he was holding back and the Cormorant came out to meet me. So I killed the Cormorant. The other two stuck around and this took some tricky flying which was going extremely well for me until the Merlin finally managed to sneak up behind me and get me scrammed and webbed.
Good fight though.

BAD
There really isn't anything I can add to this mess.

UGLY
Y'know that moment when your platted Zealot warps really really slowly and falls behind the rest of the gang just as a huge blob of nasty enemy ships jumps into system from a Titan bridge and puts bubbles up in your path? Yeah, me too.

The rest falls into Tusker FFA which is a whole different story. And that is the Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

Destroy All Things: Part One: Morals

I've been a Pirate for over two years now. The moral quagmire that initially presented itself during my transition from "null soldier" to "pirate" have been long abandoned and rectified. That wasn't always an easy transition for me, but those days are over two years behind us now.

So where does that leave morality in the wake of being a Pirate in Eve?

Morality is always a tough one. Defining a moral platform from which to issue blanket edicts hasn't been the easiest thing for humans over our history, so far be it for me to try and do so on this wittle blog. But I think there is one rather universal truth from which we can make some observations. The Golden Rule as it is often referred to, or do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Treat others they way you'd like to be treated.

During the past two years my own moral platform has evolved to a similar basic premise that can be summed up rather easily as "Destroy All Things". And in this series of posts I'll be taking a look at what that choice means, from a moral, philosophical, financial, play and game play perspective when it comes to playing Eve Online.

So my moral platform is Destroy All Things. On the Tusker kill-board is this bit of genius that I like:
"The Tuskers exist to highlight the brutal inconsistencies of organized government through disruption of taxable activities, destruction of profit-generating capital, seizure of assets in support of our goals, and the murder of pilots not in harmony with our programme."

That kind of sums it up nicely I think. My own personal goal is to destroy whatever happens to be in space with me at the time. I make no real intrinsic value judgements based on age, ship, or corporation/alliance. Another ship in space is another target that needs to be exploded as quickly as possible. Which is all well and good until we introduce questions and gray areas. What about Rookie Ships? What about Pods? What about good fights and moral judgements on individual conduct? What about the odds?

And this is when the Golden Rule comes back around. Treat others the way you'd like to be treated. Well, I'd like others to hunt and attack me as well. It would make my game much more interesting if everyone else didn't turn and run when I enter local. I certainly appreciate an honest effort to destroy me. It makes things so much more interesting.

But, even so, I've been forced to develop some minor qualifiers to the general DAT theme. I can't just undock and attack local. I mean, that would be a play-style choice, but I also have other considerations. Primarily a sense of professionalism, my Corp mates and the value of things in which I fly. I don't have an endless bucket of ISK from which to draw.

So a moral foundation that exists between DAT and Do Unto has developed. This moral foundation derives from several important factors - wanting to fight as often as possible, wanting to avoid death, wanting to have fun and wanting to be good at it. Smash those things together, stir violently and you have the beginnings of a Moral Code from which to be a Pirate in Eve.

So while I do not hunt young players specifically, I also tend to not make a judgement on their age before exploding their ship in a belt. Ship in belt = warp in and attack. I may only discover their age and/or horrible fitting ability after the fact. That Algos could just as easily be incredibly well-fitted and flown by a booster implanted t3 enhanced killing machine as it is by a two month old player. My play-style doesn't always allow me the comfort of making before engagement or mid-engagement decisions, as those tend to get me killed in the process. It is mostly an all or nothing decision. Go or don't go.

And those decisions are typically split-second choices based on gut, experience and situational awareness - not morals.

From a moral standpoint, in-game, the sky is the limit. Destroy All Things stands within the Eve Universe as it cannot do outside of it. And that, for me at least, is the reason I play. From a Pirate perspective, moral choices play a very minor role in deciding how, when and why to play.

It is after all, only pixels.

In the next installment, I'll take this line of thought even further and examine the more philosophical questions that the Pirate lifestyle raises.

BB43: Da Herp De Derp Awards

And yes, I took a bit of a blogging vacation this week.

As usual Stan sends out the call for yet another Blog Banter, this one a self-serving opportunity to lay some heavy recognition on the community and point fingers at people. I can't help but be reminded of those shiny people in High School that broke each other's arms patting themselves on the back for bullshit awards like "most likely to succeed" and whatnot.

I never was very shiny.

My "vacation" this week came about in part because of this BB honestly. I'm usually one of the first to jump up and write something in response. But this time I struggled. At first I wasn't sure why exactly. But as the week has worn on it has become increasingly obvious to me.

Right up front. This has nothing to do with Stan or anything to do with the BB, both of which I admire and look forward to. But I won't be participating in pointing fingers, calling out my fellow bloggers, or otherwise ignoring anyone. No matter how well written or thoughtful I can be, which I can, someone will get left out. And I'm not going to do that to anyone. Believe it or not, every single blog on my reading list is on there for a reason. Because I read them! Every one. Every post.

Having read the various other posts in the BB43 I'm caught by the general "sameness" of the community response. The usual, usuals and the typical responses in general. As if the Eve Community had about 5 people in it. It doesn't by the way. High School Student Council did though. And while there are those that do more than others, those that like to see their names bandied about, those that feed on the adulation of others, there are many, many more that do this - that participate - because they love Eve. And to those, you know who you are, I say congrats. I'm your biggest fan.

So I have no awards to give out. Instead I would like to point one giant finger at the Eve Community and say the following: Thank you!

Every time a new post pops to the top of my list I click with anticipation and dive right in. You make my days more interesting, teach me things about corners of Eve I don't care about, show me funny things, tell me cool stories and generally keep me entertained. It isn't easy doing what we do, dragging your ass into a post and trying to get your point across. But you guys do it, get it and keep doing it. So thank you. Every single last one of you.

Just remember the Student Council president isn't better than you. More than likely he'll end up a small town Dentist in a rural community somewhere unknown. (cough!) Anyway...

Back in the 1970s Stan Lee used to hand out No-Prizes in his column as Editor of Marvel Comics. I'd like to hand out a No-Prize to every Eve Blogger. You guys have earned it.


For more BB43 Responses, please visit Stan's site.

Even Better December

For some reason it took our Killboard a tad longer than usual to tabulate the final end-of-month awards, but they finally got themselves sorted. Turns out I had an even better month than I originally thought. And before anyone starts to think I'm getting a big head around here:

A) I am still terrible at Eve.
B) ^^ I've never said different.
C) It is only one month, and one in which I had some extra play time which won't last.
D) After four plus years of playing this damn game I deserve to show off a little. So there.

You can see the December Awards wrap up here, or click the image below.

Click to embiggen

So allow me a small moment of "WoOt!!" and then back to being terrible again...

Tusker FFA: Day After

Six hours of chaos. Over 4,800 ships destroyed. Hundreds and hundreds of free frigates given out constantly. One Thanatos warped to zero. Lots of criminal podding, illegal ships and dozens of rule-benders and out-right breakers. All in all a huge blast of fun, insanity and incredible coordination.

By any measure, yesterday's Tusker Frigate Free For All was a unmitigated success.

The Killboard for the event can be seen here. Kills seem to take their own time posting, I know my own stats are different than what is being shown there. But I suspect they will eventually align with our own Killboard.

First of all I think it is important to recognize just how much time and effort The Tuskers put into getting ready for this event. I wish I knew all of the details so I could publicly recognize each one of my fellow Corp mates, but sadly I do not. I do know that dozens of JF trips to Jita, Dodixie and points in-between were involved. I know that many hundreds and hundreds of Frigates were built, mods transfered, contacts used and hundreds of hours of dedicated effort went into making the event work. Not to mention the Tuskers locked into stations handing out Frigs to hungry PvPers, those that policed the system, and on and on. It was a gargantuan effort and deserving of tremendous thanks and appreciation. Well done mates.


For my part the FFA presents its own unique challenges. I spent the first hours trying hard to get into fights, but generally speaking most of the people I caught out on their own tended to run away. Which I totally understand. Obviously my name is rather well known and causes its own unique challenges to getting good fights in such an environment. I was also the subject of some rather aggressive gank attempts from some of my "friends". I won't mention any names. Many of my fights were ruined once they saw me on grid and ganged up on me, forcing me to disengage or drawing attention that caused me to explode. It would've been easy enough to return the favor, but I don't play that way.

There were also many people exploiting the situation to their own benefit and the Tuskers tried as best that we could to Police those efforts. Reported and confirmed podders were themselves podded. One person in particular was podded at least four times that I know about. Several other groups were acting in unison and were also dealt with. Pretty typical stuff.

Someone warped a Thanny to zero in the first belt and that caused some good old-fashioned chaos. This is when I stopped playing and joined the Police Force in my Lachesis. I jumped in and held point on the Thanny so everyone would have a chance to get in on the kill. Not that he was planning on getting away, but we just wanted to make sure.

After four hours my family had enough and I had to logg off. But all in all I had a great time and ended up about 18 or 20 and 9 on the day, I still think a few kms are missing. But I gave better than I got and had a blast, which is what it was all about.

If you managed to get in on a killmail with my name on it, congratulations. And if you happened to be on the other end of one, good fight.

Till next time.

TODAY!!!

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Today is the best time you will ever have in Eve!! Even if you've never PvP'ed a day in your life, you owe it to yourself to show up tomorrow and pew someone in the face!

FOR DETAILS CLICK HERE!

The last FFA was a huge and rousing success, I think everyone managed to have a great time and enjoy themselves. So be sure to join us, bring lots of frigates and your finely honed skills.

Free Frigates Available! So no excuses. All are welcome.

See you there!

Big Babies

Eve sure is full of Big Babies.

Let's define what I mean. A Big Baby is an immature whiner that believes the world revolves around them and everything that happens to them is "unfair". So, when threatened, they throw fits, tantrums, hurl insults and generally behave so badly that everyone else is drowned out. They'll do this until they get their own way.

That is Big Baby Syndrome, or BBS, and Eve is full of them. You know them, they yell at you on the forums, they attack you in local chat, they lie about you, they whine and whine until everyone else just moves along. They have the biggest mouth, so they always think they must be right.

Baby's are funny.

I tend to attract Babies in Eve. Since day one this has been the case. The very first player I encountered in Eve, way back in Todaki - was a Big Baby. I don't remember the specifics but he exploded outside the Noob station and had a hissy fit in local. Threw a rage tantrum like you wouldn't believe. His character is inactive, I just checked. That was day one.

Since then, like a magnet, Big Babies have been yelling at me, threatening me, accusing me and generally telling me how terrible I am. And how they are going to "make me pay". Lolz. And yes, I can remember each and every one of their names. And yes, I just checked and guess what? Most of them don't play Eve anymore. The rest are heads of Alliances!

I don't think I'm unusual in this regard. I suspect many of you reading this post have your own similar stories about your own encounters with this most pleasing of Eve player. I know for me, I attract them simply because of the way I've always played the game - unapologetic. I play my way and I don't apologize for it. I simply don't care at all what anyone else thinks about it. I'm annoying that way. I rub people the wrong way. I cause trouble, even though I don't try to do so. It just follows me. And I follow it. I admit that.

I used to fly where the trouble was. Name a hot-spot in Eve over the past four years and I was probably there. Or close. That is the way I play. And Big Babies don't like it. It annoys them. They think the world revolves around them and I should recognize how special of a snowflake they are. Awwww, look how cute he is!

You're not a special snowflake. You are meat. And meat exists to be eaten. Don't lie to yourself and think for a minute that I, even for a moment, care what you think. Those that came before you thought that way. And most of them are dust now. Trampled by time. Forgotten by memory. Like you will be.

Harsh? Yeah it is. That is Eve. Deal with it.

I know, I know. Usually this blog is about having "fun", pretty pictures, comics and talking about how awesome this game is. Yeah yeah. But it would be foolish to ignore the other side of Eve. The side full of ignorant Big Babies.

Just remember this dear reader - the BBS biggest weapon against you is how loud they are. Just like real babies they will scream and scream until they get their way. But be strong. Stand your ground. Know that you are right. Play the game the way YOU want to play it and don't let anyone tell you different.

They say Eve doesn't have a win button, but they are wrong. It does. And it is called time. Just hang in there and don't give up.

Mailbag: Rants of Mad Men

The names have been changed to protect and I've &*%$ bad words - but otherwise these are unedited Eve Mails I've received just this week.

"UR DEAD! Subject says it all.   I`m a CRAZY killer .. U just shot the wrong pimp!"

"Not really.  I`m just going to blow you up and then take a dump on the remains of ur ship.  Unless you give me some money"

"I`m` on ur mom so you got some ground to make up too sun.   Specially cause i stuck my finger in her &%$......  Big time ground to make up... She liked it."

"i don't want to flame on you ... i just want to know what did you gain from destroying my ship AND killing me after?"

"I wonder if your real life persona is as one-dimensional and pig ignorant as your eve one? hmm....."

"Leet moves. you have none"

"Rank Stupidity!"

"you are an idiot. and should change ur bio srsly"

-------------------


You may find it hard to believe, but I generally write them back. Here are a few examples of what I say in return to these fine comments:

"I'm a Pirate, I kill all things. Nothing personal, in fact it has nothing to do with you at all. You were in a ship in a system I was in, so I destroyed you. That is how I play the game.

My advice. If you are going to fly in Low-Security space, learn to use the d-scan and be aligned. And stop using the Autopilot. Even with your ship destroyed you still should have gotten your pod out. There really is no excuse for that.

Read my blog, just yesterday I posted an entire column for young players to avoid people like me."


Sigh. I keep trying.


If you want even more fun, feel free to watch the comments on this kill.

Some real winners on that one.

SATURDAY!!!

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Wow! Is it time for another one of these already!?!??

That's right, it is time once again for another Tusker sponsored Frigate Free For All and this one is even Bigger & Longer!

FOR DETAILS CLICK HERE!

The last FFA was a huge and rousing success, I think everyone managed to have a great time and enjoy themselves. So be sure to join us, bring lots of frigates and your finely honed skills.

Free Frigates Available! So no excuses. All are welcome.

See you there!

The Pure Pirate

The following is my own opinion and does not reflect the opinion of others. Nor does it diminish, enhance, detract or otherwise take away from the validity of how other people play Eve. I fully support the rights of individuals to play Eve any way they so choose. In fact, I encourage it.

I play Eve my own way. I always have. I make no excuses for it. The way I play has evolved over the last four plus years but some things have always remained the same. I like to have fun. And when I say "fun", what I really mean is danger. For in danger, I find excitement, adventure, and ultimately FUN.

The definition of how that happens has obviously changed over the years as my own abilities have changed. A week after I started playing Eve I was bored out of my mind in Hi-Sec, so I joined a Corporation that was headed to Null Space. A week old. I did that because it sounded like more fun.

Oh yes, I died a lot. But it didn't matter back then. I was learning and I was young. I became as good of a pilot as I could. I flew ships I shouldn't have flown. I did everything I tell young players not to do!! I took crazy risks and paid the price for them over and over again. The only thing I was good at back then was what we called Hero Tackle.

Hero Tackle is really a meat shield. Some idiot in a ship that flies ahead of the main fleet and grabs point on a target that will most likely kill him, so that the rest of the fleet has time to arrive and kill it. I lost 26 Crows that way. I know this because I number my Crows and #27 is sitting in my hanger right now. God knows how many Taranis I lost, I didn't number those.

I was a good Hero Tackle. I mastered the art. I could pull a cloaking Stealth Bomber off a gate lickety-split.

And then I started moving to wherever the danger was greatest. I sought out places of conflict and went there. Mostly in Providence. Over and over again. Why? Because that was where the action was.

I mention all of this as a prelude to the way I play the role of being a scum-sucking Pirate. "Fun" has always been a bit of a misnomer when I write about it here on the blog. It can often be mis-understood. Fun for me is defined as being excellent at your chosen profession and not giving two-cents how anyone else feels about how you do that. But for me, I have to be comfortable in how I approach the game. It has to make some sense to me. It is one of the main reasons I joined the Tuskers after my own Corp died. The Code. The code helps make sense of things.

My play-style has also evolved because I am limited technologically. I'm on a Mac. So I could never really get the hang of dual-boxing. Mostly because it was impossible for so long. So I don't dual-box. Again, this isn't because of any ethical superiority on my part, far from it. But because it isn't an option it has developed into a choice I made.

Same with booster alts. I don't have one. My only alt, a transportation alt I created about three years ago, is now on my main account and doesn't even train. I made that decision earlier this year when I was unemployed.

Which finally brings me to the subject of this post. I have always flown pure. I don't use snakes ( can't afford them! ), I don't use Pills ( can't afford them ), I don't use a boosting alt, or dual-box a scout, or anything else. It is just me out there in space.

This is the way I have chosen to play the game. So every victory is mine. And every loss is on me.

( And don't think for a minute that I won't drop a Cyno on your sorry ass! I don't mean that. And when I am in a gang or fleet you can be damn sure I use all the tricks at my disposal. I'm not an idiot, this isn't some kind of stupid Holy Crusade! I'm a Pirate )

Because of these choices I'll probably never be highly ranked on BC. That isn't really even a goal of mine. My goal is to be excellent at my job. And my job is being a Pirate. But reaching the 5k mark on BC does make me happy. Because I worked hard to get there. And I am fully aware of the problems with BC Rankings, I'm not an idiot. But those are other people's problems, not mine. I can take pride in knowing I did a good job.

I choose to fly pure. I choose to engage and fight. I choose to manage my meager bank by selling loot as my only source of income. ( And commissions of course, but that's out of game ) I'm never going to be the best Pirate in Eve. I'm not even trying to do that. But I will be the best pilot that I can be.

And maybe, just maybe, that will mean something. It already does to me.