This week I released my second video in the new series taking a deep dive into PvP ships in Eve Online - The Definitive Hookbill. The first one in the series was on the Comet. You can catch them both over on my YouTube channel, along with lots of other videos. And I plan on continuing these as long as people keep watching them. They aren't easy videos to produce and they take a lot of planning, prep, and work to get just right.
One of the hardest parts to decide on is what to leave in and what to leave out. Honestly I could talk about these ships for hours. There is so much information to share, tactics, fitting choices, manual piloting tips, it just never ends. Which is both a testament to Eve and a challenge to anyone trying to share information and advice. Ultimately I try to cover the main issues and provide some solid advice on the main flavors of fitting options for each ship, and focus on why those choices work and don't work. In the Hookbill's case I even added a section about ammo choices, mainly because I see so many wrecks with 4,000 rockets in them. Which is just a waste.
I was fortunate in my early Eve career to be surrounded by players willing to share, answer questions, and teach me the fundamentals when it came to PvP. And more often than not, they would explain these concepts by showing me those concepts in action. Inside the game. Later when I started taking FC classes with teachers in Null-Sec, the same concepts would be expanded upon and learned. Repetition. Experience. Practice. Inside of Eve I try to impart and share as much as I can given the circumstances and I'll often give mini-lectures during the fleets I'm FC'ing. But I'm not a teacher inside of Eve, that is not my primary reason for playing.
But YouTube is another story. So I'll keep trying to figure out ways to share this knowledge with the wider Eve community. And do so in entertaining and impactful ways. I've given a lot of thought to this and I'm trying to figure out the best way to communicate not only basic core principles, but also more esoteric concepts in that format. And, perhaps, even here in these pages.
Yesterday I slid in on a Slicer at zero in my Comet. After the fight was over the pilot asked me what he could have done better. And so I spent a good ten minutes explaining basic kiting concepts and that he shouldn't be fighting Comets at zero in his Slicer. He honestly seemed to appreciate the information and promised to try it next time. Again, basic concepts that more experienced players take for granted, might not be as universal as we think.
Another example. Recently in fleet a pilot shared their loss with us. Immediately I asked why he was using a MWD on his fit. What followed was a very basic learning session about how Scrams work and why using MWDs on brawling ships is often a truly bad idea. The difference between scrams and disruptors and what they do to your ship during combat is such a fundamental part of PvP that I never really considered the fact that maybe not everyone knows about it? Where do you learn these things?
The best part is that knowing that opened up a new world for this pilot and he recently shared an encounter where his knowledge helped him defeat an enemy he normally would have lost to. So that is extremely encouraging.
So yeah, look for more tips and tricks, advice, knowledge, and tactical sharing here in these pages. I don't often appreciate the fact that I'm a walking mountain of knowledge, and maybe it is time I start thinking about myself that way.
What ship should I do a deep dive on next?
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