Last night I landed on a gate in my little Condor along with a player flying a Vexor Navy Issue. We both looked at each other and the other player jumped. I followed. On the other side he warped off again to another gate and I followed. A neutral VNI is in no danger from my Condor generally speaking, but especially on gates. We continued this for a few more jumps, each time he would remain cloaked after the jump for longer and longer times. As we approached our home system I was hoping he'd just jump into High Sec and safety. (Well, to be honest I was really hoping he'd make a mistake and warp to a belt or something, let's be honest) But instead he went into a Medium plex and got blobbed to death by our weird neighbors. But this story isn't about them.
In that same situation I often watch as the other player starts to panic after each jump. More often than not I can tell that the level of panic is starting to rise and the other player seems uncertain about what to do next. Eventually, usually after holding cloak for the maximum amount of time, they will usually just log off. Deal with this later. Probably after some coffee or alcohol. Or a trip to the restroom.
My presence in local often generates interesting results. I almost wrote "unexpected results" but that would be untrue, after having played this game for so long I've become used to them. They're just part of my experience these days. The other day I jumped into a system that contained nine players all from different groups and all on scan from the gate. Before I could d-scan them down and figure out what was going on (all while still cloaked from the gate jump mind you) they had all scattered, docked up, jumped out, or literally logged off. All of them. Within a few short minutes local was empty. This is not unusual.
The opposite of that reaction is generally cause for alarm. Often people will view my entry into a system as an opportunity and this is sometimes a good thing, as it means I'll actually get a fight. But sometimes it means I'm about to get blobbed. Or fall into a trap. Or worse. For me, it can often be extremely challenging to know the difference. And this mental effort is my primary work out these days when I'm out alone. Do these people know me and are they prepared already? Or is this just another example of being in the wrong place at the wrong time?
Because here is the mental trap - not everything that happens is because of you. That VNI was in no danger from my Condor - I was heading home to log off for the night. The only SF help was too many jumps away, so he was free and clear. He didn't know that. Just as I often don't know things. That Recon Trap isn't there because of me, it has been there all along. Although sometimes it is there for me. And sometimes when I jump into local I just happen to catch people as they are leaving. Tricky stuff.
It'd be wrong of me to assume everything that is happening is because of me. That's simply ludicrous. And dangerous. However, I'm not a noob at this either. I've played long enough and talked to enough players before, during, and after incidents to know that it is often about me. Mostly because of what I represent beyond just being me. I'm danger. Danger represented by -10 standings, skulls, red and yellow flashing icons and a reputation. It is after all, a sign of respect. A hard-earned and battle tested sign of respect. And nothing more.
I also do it. Certain players being in my local generate assumptions. When I see We Deliver in local I assume he'll be in that Cynabal of his. I could name dozens more. We all do it. It is that second sense you develop having lived and played for so long in dangerous space. We seek intel from as many sources as we can in order to make decisions that often have positive or negative results. It's just human nature.
And it is all part of what makes Eve Online such as fascinating and complex world to play in.