tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-41598408073938568562024-03-16T14:52:15.555-04:00Target CallerWelcome to Target Caller, an Eve Online blog dedicated to PvP.Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.comBlogger450125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-81345874333911561892023-10-23T11:19:00.006-04:002023-10-23T11:31:59.876-04:00Now available: House Aretoli<p>My latest historical novel, <b>House Aretoli</b>, is now available for sale!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH8TUyKxN1fGV0JYBeO2Ld3n7ZblpDsYl-CIdZcXHHoHQs_Lgwj-pt3zVxHFRSXo6bhyEEcDc3sAJVcgoNTsKU6YXyS4rfzeleszr3JjiZ848TaYPuajRjdhfyFRGm6-yagQOY8fmwC0dQF1SULRHXmgd0_VGEUNmUqvqdH4lGN49TB0zuX4M_B61cVrCR/s2056/House%20Aretoli%20Promo%20Composite%202%20Cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1792" data-original-width="2056" height="332" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH8TUyKxN1fGV0JYBeO2Ld3n7ZblpDsYl-CIdZcXHHoHQs_Lgwj-pt3zVxHFRSXo6bhyEEcDc3sAJVcgoNTsKU6YXyS4rfzeleszr3JjiZ848TaYPuajRjdhfyFRGm6-yagQOY8fmwC0dQF1SULRHXmgd0_VGEUNmUqvqdH4lGN49TB0zuX4M_B61cVrCR/w381-h332/House%20Aretoli%20Promo%20Composite%202%20Cropped.jpg" width="381" /></a></div><h3 style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: red;">Buy it now!</span></b></h3><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/1737639149/">United States</a> | <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CDCMQZN3">United Kingdom</a> | <a href="https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0CDCMQZN3">Canada</a> | <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0CDCMQZN3">Australia</a></div><p><b>1365, Venice</b>. For generations, the merchants of House Aretoli have profited through faithful service to the Republic of Venice. Despite being only a minor senatorial family, they’ve established a reputation for reliability, fidelity, and ingenuity.</p><p>But the Aretoli are about to face the ultimate test. Caught up in a rebellion on Venice’s territory of Crete, young Niccolo Aretoli returns as a hero after saving the governor’s life and evacuating the loyal citizenry. Yet despite his new fame, not all is well in Venice. Niccolo’s beloved has been forced into marriage to safeguard her family from ruin. Fresh jealousies divide him from his brother Flavio. And traitorous senators and a seductive foreign agent threaten to divide and destroy his family as part of an even darker design.</p><p><span style="font-size: small;">From brothel to Senate, on land and sea, through marriage and loss, the sons and daughters of House Aretoli struggle against spies, treachery, and assassination. The seeds of discord are already growing, and they threaten to turn sibling against sibling. Chased on land and sea by enemies and betrayed by his closest allies, Niccolo must overcome a conspiracy that threatens his survival, the lives of his family, and the very existence of the republic itself.</span></p>Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-49563361240661714842022-09-24T00:35:00.001-04:002023-10-23T11:31:44.309-04:00Now available: The Welsh Dragon<p>My latest historical novel, <b>The Welsh Dragon</b>, is now available for sale!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL_eZWXIpkECdkwzTtXhsLa8F_4U4udlfexRZ9tamUj0OEpuGRyyxlPXJ_trBF0X5ok3-k1v_UIPyGK-oV6U6wcppmAEP_wRWuFNZ2QYwOJyvM0cWYYhVez3zrhaZuhuJaL03Ed0i_KDAN8keopEWi1mJ7d4-SbmTewdN1qunzOoKItANGvrgm76XYR6ue/s1464/Welsh%20Dragon%20Promo%20Image%20Cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1144" data-original-width="1464" height="294" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL_eZWXIpkECdkwzTtXhsLa8F_4U4udlfexRZ9tamUj0OEpuGRyyxlPXJ_trBF0X5ok3-k1v_UIPyGK-oV6U6wcppmAEP_wRWuFNZ2QYwOJyvM0cWYYhVez3zrhaZuhuJaL03Ed0i_KDAN8keopEWi1mJ7d4-SbmTewdN1qunzOoKItANGvrgm76XYR6ue/w376-h294/Welsh%20Dragon%20Promo%20Image%20Cropped.jpg" width="376" /></a></div><h3 style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: red;">Buy it now!</span></b></h3><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Welsh-Dragon-novel-Henry-Tudor/dp/1737639122/">United States</a> | <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0B7P3KK4W">United Kingdom</a> | <a href="https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0B7P3KK4W">Canada</a> | <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0B7P3KK4W">Australia</a></div><p>1471 A.D. The Wars of the Roses ravage England. After six months of turmoil, Yorkist King Edward IV has shattered his enemies and reclaimed his throne. As one of the last surviving Lancastrians, young Henry Tudor flees with his uncle Jasper to keep his head from adorning London Bridge beside his grandfather’s. He won’t return for fourteen long years.</p><p>Blown by storms to Brittany, Henry is trapped between the king who hunts him and a duke who views him as leverage. Though his mother labors in England to restore his lands and titles, Henry is conflicted at the prospect of his restoration. Though a penniless exile, Henry enjoys contentment in the arms of a Breton widow and the satisfaction of a simple life.</p><p>Henry only has a drop of bastard royal blood, but it’s enough to make the Yorkists plot his death. His survival may depend on embracing the very birthright that drove him into exile, even if it costs him his chance for happiness with his beloved. The path ahead is littered with tangled conspiracy, desperate escapes, and a Welsh dragon banner fluttering over a field named Bosworth.</p>Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-52334206679093271722022-01-29T14:40:00.006-05:002022-09-24T00:27:15.285-04:00Read my new historical Viking novel!<p>Three years ago, I walked away from Eve to focus on other projects. One of them, I'm proud to say, is now out in the world. I'm delighted to announce the launch of my new historical novel, <i><b>The Raven and the Dove</b></i>, available for purchase now!</p><b><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpuupdu9i0LsX6faVe0sV08a5hINfwxDhAUa9BEWsOUvmHqSCcNh8OcNYBZsBvwQJfxv1ovOVwd-6i7Www6hZzd8krC5N0CW2_rqTROgz6i9dRDtjJzDX4MpYeom1GQaCX-Hh67e61_WZT6m6TVC5Drxd7LzwiGaRV1MulCZLMQEIWL87f4pVqAGUNtg/s2090/Raven%20and%20Dove%20Promo%20Composite%202%20Cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-weight: 400; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1837" data-original-width="2090" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpuupdu9i0LsX6faVe0sV08a5hINfwxDhAUa9BEWsOUvmHqSCcNh8OcNYBZsBvwQJfxv1ovOVwd-6i7Www6hZzd8krC5N0CW2_rqTROgz6i9dRDtjJzDX4MpYeom1GQaCX-Hh67e61_WZT6m6TVC5Drxd7LzwiGaRV1MulCZLMQEIWL87f4pVqAGUNtg/s320/Raven%20and%20Dove%20Promo%20Composite%202%20Cropped.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><h3 style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: red;">Buy it now!</span></b></h3></b><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/1737639114/">United States</a> | <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Raven-Dove-novel-Viking-Normandy/dp/1737639114">United Kingdom</a> | <a href="https://www.amazon.ca/Raven-Dove-novel-Viking-Normandy/dp/1737639114/">Canada</a> | <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/Raven-Dove-novel-Viking-Normandy/dp/1737639114">Australia</a></div><p><b>890 A.D. </b>Shieldmaiden Halla hungers for death in battle and a place in Valhalla until a Frankish sword shatters her expectations of a glorious end. In the space between life and death, she instead confronts the emptiness of a wasted life.</p><p>Hiding from the Norsemen among shattered abbeys and abandoned towns in northern Frankia, Christian landowner Taurin fears the day a dragon-headed longship rediscovers them and drags his people away as slaves.</p><p>Their worlds collide when Jarl Rollo of Rouen annexes Taurin’s town and appoints Halla as ruler. United in an uneasy political marriage, Halla and Taurin must confront their conflicted feelings and their peoples’ mutual hostility. Tensions strain their fragile marriage. Christians who refuse to obey a woman stoke rebellion. Glory-seeking Norse raiders terrorize Halla’s domain. If they can’t unite, the threats surrounding them will tear apart their new family and swallow both of their peoples in war and ruin.</p><h3 style="text-align: left;"><i><b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">What reviewers and readers say:</span></b></i></h3><p><i>"K.M. Butler’s debut is written with the swagger and finesse of a much more experienced author. A more thoughtful and complex story than the usual Viking novel fare, this book still manages to pack enough action, intrigue, and conflict to carry us happily to the shield-shaking, sword-swinging conclusion that stands up to the best in the genre."</i> <b>J.C. Duncan, author of A Song of Steel</b></p><p><i>"This well-crafted tale of love and battle transports the reader back to the early days of Viking Normandy, a world populated by fearsome shield-maidens and valiant warriors. Grounded in historical fact and replete with authentic detail, this book will resonate with readers who love fiction set in the Viking Age."</i> <b>Johanna Wittenberg, author of The Norsewomen Series</b></p><p><i>"Butler balances action, description, and character development deftly; the pacing is excellent. History is neatly inserted primarily through conversation, without feeling like an ‘info-dump’, and the world the author invokes feels both well-researched and real, without jarring anachronisms. The Raven and the Dove is an impressive first novel, one written with skill and craft."</i> <b>Marian Thorpe, Discovering Diamonds review</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-18411398924137191212018-06-29T10:54:00.001-04:002018-06-29T10:54:14.591-04:00Comms SilentSome time ago, I decided to take a step back from Eve and blogging about Eve to focus more on real life. At the time, I hoped to continue to play on occasion, but avoid the kinds of entanglements that required the commitment of more than an hour at a time.<br />
<br />
After trying this approach for a few weeks, it became pretty clear that this really wasn't possible. For me, Eve was about PvP, an expensive endeavor in terms of time. From staging your ships to earning the isk to afford them to reaching your hunting ground, it could take an hour to find your targets, and and half an hour or so to return to your staging to reship. I just didn't have that kind of time anymore.<br />
<br />
Put simply, Eve is not a game in which you can do serious solo or small-gang PvP part-time.<br />
<br />
I held on for a year and a half, but have never really logged in. In fact, I uninstalled Eve completely during a computer clean-out several months ago. A couple weeks ago, I saw an advertisement for the new expansion, shrugged my shoulders, and decided to reinstall.<br />
<br />
The Eve I found was almost unrecognizable. When I left, the new character sheet was just being unveiled, and I never really warmed to it. I found myself struggling to understand where everything was in the non-intuitive layout. All of my shortcuts, window positions, and overview settings were gone, and none of my key combinations worked anymore. I never used the new scanner window, opting for the old system as long as I was able, and I found the new one to be very different. it honestly didn't seem worth it to even try to learn it again. All in all, each of these little cuts combined into a big barrier to re-entry that, given my passing interest, was just too much.<br />
<br />
But, in the end, after a year and a half off, what really sealed the deal for me was the time. Time to undock. time to warp to the next system, time to get to Jita, time for windows to open and populate the vanilla client (no settings changed and no rebinding of keys). Time, time, time. I wanted to get a character to Jita from 10 jumps away, and with the vanilla client, it took half an hour. I forgot about that part: the time it takes to do anything in Eve.<br />
<br />
When I was playing regularly, I was willing to put in that time. In fact, I touted it as a feature. And, I suspect, each of you does as well. But now it's a massive barrier to re-entry for a returning player.<br />
<br />
I came to see if it was worth returning to Eve. I left realizing that it absolutely was not. Not for as much time per week I was willing to put into it.<br />
<br />
I mention this not to bad-mouth Eve, CCP, or the players. It's a great game if you have the time to devote to it. Rather, I point this out as the experience of a player who was a dedicated player familiar with large portions of the game, from the unspoken mechanics to the physical actions you take to accomplish them. As the experience of a player who hasn't touched the game in only a year and a half. In other words, as one of the best winback targets of CCP's efforts.<br />
<br />
Use this qualitative experience for what it is, and no more. I make no claims about the experiences of everyone, but rather simply provide what I experienced.<br />
<br />
In the end, I can say with confidence - and without doubt or hostility - that I'm done with Eve. It was a great ride, but it's moved on without me, and just like taking on a new job or a new relationship, we've drifted apart. I've sold Talvorian Dex and Valeria Bovinus, and will hold onto the isk just in case someone I know decides they want to start up the game, but frankly, I predict it'll just sit there forever.<br />
<br />
I'm happy to leave the site running, including the PvE guides. Please feel free to use them for as long as they remain viable, but I won't be updating them any further.<br />
<br />
Good luck to all of you. I've made good friends, had good arguments, sworn vengeance, exalted my triumphs, decried my failures, shared joy and misery, made suggestions, whined annoyingly, and been proud to participate in this great (if dwindling) blogging community for this stupid, little, glorious, complicated game.<br />
<br />
The last target has been called. The fleet is over. And comms fall silent.Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-54063415941198875962016-12-27T14:10:00.001-05:002017-02-26T13:07:29.910-05:00Playing in Small Increments<div class="MsoNormal">
For the past six years, work and family have absorbed most
of my time, and relaxation activities fell into the gaps. More often than not,
I’d either have to drop them or cut into sleep to enjoy them. Physically, it’s
amazing how much getting the proper amount of sleep can change you. I’m a lot
more clear-headed, am yawning a lot less, and am generally a lot more pleasant
to be around. It’s amazing how easy it is to miss gradual changes.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The past month has been a busy one, preparing for Christmas
with two kids, finishing out the year at work, and enjoying some time gaming,
albeit much less than before. Whereas previously I’d spend a little time before
bed each night playing, for the past month and a half, I’ve only snatched an
hour here and there.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That said, I’ve quite rarely been playing Eve. Oh, sure, I’ve
been playing the heck out of Skyrim, and after the Steam sale, I’ve been
enjoying Total War: Attila and Stellaris. The reasons for that shift really
speak to some of the long-term challenges Eve has faced.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
On paper, the launch of alpha clones should have generated a
lot of excitement for me. More people in space needing to learn about the game?
For a site like mine, it’d be ideal. I should have been reposting old articles,
creating new guides, and addressing some of the emergent problems alpha clones
were facing. That would have likely meant lots of time reading through the Eve-O
forums and reddit, scouring them for insights.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Only, that’s exactly the kind of time sink I just can’t
manage anymore. A month ago I shared that I wasn’t leaving Eve, only reducing
my level of engagement. That meant a lot less reddit reading. I tool my hands
off the tiller, as it were, and decided to try to just enjoy the game and talk
about my experiences.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In so doing, I discovered the truth of something I’d really
only considered in passing. Eve is not a game for casuals. By that, I don’t
mean that casuals don’t belong. The game would undoubtedly be better without
them, and it desperately needs its new blood.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
No, what I mean, perhaps put a little more clearly, is that
Eve is not suited to a causal playstyle. Is that really a surprising comment to
make about a game that promotes itself on saying, “We don’t provide content;
players are the content”?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Many bloggers are casting about for an explanation as to why
new players leave the game in such high numbers. Some point to the fact that so
many of the game’s institutions – corporations, alliances, and communities –
tend to push you to play more and more often. Pap links, kill requirements, external
chat servers like Discord… they all deepen the engagement to get you to be able
to respond and log in immediately. You end up playing the game even when you
aren’t playing the game.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The natural state of playing Eve is to become more and more
involved naturally over time. By limiting your time, you limit your deepest
possible level of engagement. Simply put, you miss everything worth participating
in on a community level. Supercap kill about to go down? Well, you missed it
because you weren’t on Discord. Find an interesting PvE site that someone
needed help with? Too bad, they couldn’t contact you.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And, honestly, there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s only
reasonable that before people can work together, they need to communicate. Being
an active part of a community should result in better and more enjoyable
content.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The real problem comes from the nature of that content. Try
to play Eve for an entire month in half-hour sessions at a time. Just try it. I
suspect you’ll find the same thing I did; the first half hour, even the first
hour, of most types of gameplay are set-up, with nothing interesting happening
until will after that. The vast majority of fleets take a couple hours, and
most of them don’t even leave until half an hour in.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Even PvE content takes the better part of an hour to do most
things, with the exception of some missions (which may take half an hour
round-trip) or and an optimized cosmic anomaly. Eve simply isn’t a game that
includes options for quick fun.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Contrast that, if you will, with many other games out there.
Think of your favorite one. For me, I’ll consider space games (Stellaris),
multiplayer games (Counter-Strike), or strategic games (Total War). Sure, Eve as
a whole is different from them. But people don’t choose to play a game based on
an entirety of what they can do; they choose based on what they will do with
that session. What can you really accomplish with half an hour that compares to
half an hour with any of those other games in your library? In many cases, Eve
requires a critical mass of time before it’s worthwhile to even log in.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That’s the challenge really facing Eve. I hold to my
original belief that casuals are outside of the core demographic of CCP and Eve
Online as whole. They can certainly enjoy themselves and should be welcomed,
but Eve just isn’t built for casuals.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you have a lot of time, Eve can be immensely rewarding
and rich game that reveals much about human behavior and the variety of
emergent gameplay. But if you don’t, it will often come in second when
considering which of the games in your library should fill some spare moments.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Ultimately, it’s not comprehension that limits the breadth
of Eve players, but the time commitment required to really accomplish anything
with a play session. That’s the real trick, though. How can you create that
popcorn content that’s engaging and worth doing, without unbalancing it for the
core demographic? Is it even possible, or is the attempt to capture both the casual
and hardcore markets impossible for one game to do effectively?Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-68449566801284311432016-11-20T12:28:00.001-05:002016-11-20T12:28:37.229-05:00Thresholds<div class="MsoNormal">
It may have come to your attention that I haven’t posted
anything since November 4, more than two weeks ago. Even for me, this is quite
a gap.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For the past six years, I’ve played Eve pretty regularly,
logging in usually a little bit every day. In that time, nearly everything has
changed in my life. I have a lot more real-life concerns that need my
attention, and put bluntly, I was mortgaging myself my giving up sleep to
maintain the same level of engagement with the game. Most nights, I’d be looking
at 6.5 hours of sleep if I was lucky. That was a choice.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But, I can’t really justify that choice anymore. While a
component relates to the game itself, the bigger part is the realization that
this pace doesn’t really suit what I want and what really matters.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Writing a blog related to Eve Online requires a much deeper
commitment to the game than even being an FC or committed line member. In many
ways, even being a CEO isn’t as complicated. After all, as a CEO, you need only
concern yourself with the happenings of a single corporation, alliance, and
perhaps even a coalition. You can focus on the politics, the administration,
etc.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But as a blogger with an interest in writing about every
aspect of the game, you need to consider everything – the politics and events
of every alliance, rebalances, administrative actions, perceptions and
philosophy behind the game and players, and a dozen other aspects. The level of
immersion with the game really is on another level.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Added to that is the fact that you volunteer to assume a
role as a thought leader, either by turning public focus to a topic or by
sharing perspectives to a wider audience than a typical player has for existing
topics. You enter into the discourse and, in so doing, you need to become
conversant with everyone talking on that topic. It’s a lot of reading.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The side effect is that for you, Eve is “always on”. You
read reddit, every blog you can find, industry articles about the game, the
forums, and solicit feedback and perspectives from anywhere you can. Playing
Eve becomes a lot more about what happens outside the game than inside.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now, that’s all well and good, and can be a source of great
fun. But it can also be consuming. At some point, you realize how far down the
rabbit hole you’ve gone, and you have to take a step back for your own health.
Not to get into too much personal detail, but suffice it to say, that’s where I
ended up.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Eve is a great game, and it’s easy to want to engage with
it, particularly now. With so many new and returning players and the PCU at a
healthier state than it’s been in years, now would be an ideal time for blogger
to build his/her audience and contribute to that engagement. But, what we’d
like to do is different than what we need to do.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sometimes, you need to just simplify and untangle some of
the connections.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That means things are going to change for me in this blog. I
don’t think I’m going to be writing about the larger issues as much anymore,
but rather sticking to more personal experiences. I don’t want to be able to do
them justice anymore; if I do, it means I’m just as enmeshed as I was. The
“Lessons” articles are probably the ones that’ll be most unchanged.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That also means I’m going to be playing Eve on my own terms.
I won’t be logging in as often, so when I do, I’m going to want quick action. I
just can’t sit and participate in a null alliance fleet for two hours anymore.
I’m looking for fast food, not a six-course feast anymore.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
While I’ve given up my late-night gaming time, I have found
segments of time over the past two weeks. It’s been half an hour here or there,
though, or time when I’m waiting for the laundry or some other intermittent
chore. And when I’ve picked up a game, it hasn’t been Eve, it’s been Skyrim
Remastered. I can log in, kill a few things and steal from a few chests, save,
and log off.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That’s not really something I can do in Eve in my current
circumstances. I’ve long felt that while the lengthy setup of Eve activity
leads to enjoyment, it’s also a serious detriment to casual players. What’s the
saying? “Eve is two hours of boredom broken up by ninety seconds of
heart-pumping excitement.” It really is true.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Eve really is defined by its thresholds. If you have more
than X amount of time, Eve can be very satisfying. If you don’t, it’s
incredibly boring and more enjoyable to talk about than play.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At least, without changes, it is. I have a character in a
wormhole corp with a per-month membership fee and another in a null alliance
with certain activity expectations. I don’t think either are going to be
well-suited to the amount of activity I can expect to deliver anymore. I’m
going to need to make changes.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Eve is about thresholds. There are a number of lines we
either surpass of fall short of. A given activity is isk-efficient if you can
earn X isk per hour, and it’s sub-optimal (ie. stupid) if you earn X-1 isk per
hour. Fleets are Y minutes long for a given corp; if you can be online for that
length of time, they’re enjoyable, but if you can’t, you don’t participate and
gain no enjoyment from that corp. To the left of the line, you’re wasting your
and your leadership’s time. To the right, you’re a productive member of the
corp and having fun.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m certain that I’ll be dipping below that threshold in a
lot of ways, but that’s life. Eve is a game, an enjoyable activity I do in my
spare time. I can’t play the way I used to years ago anymore.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So I’m making a change. I’m a casual, and will continue to
give voice to that, hopefully sharing a little insight between the two groups
as I go. I suspect it’s going to change my perspective quite a bit. Interacting
with Eve less frequently and in smaller chunks will be different.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s possible that playing Eve at that pace isn’t really
viable. We’ll see. I’m not making any promises, only sharing what’s in my mind.</div>
Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-57023943721966945182016-11-04T10:34:00.000-04:002016-11-04T10:34:01.260-04:00FC Lessons: Jumping the Gun<div class="MsoNormal">
Friday night, I noticed that no one had pinged for a fleet
yet, so I imported some Comets and Merlins right in the middle of Black Rise
and sent out a ping. 7 people showed up – honestly not bad considering no one
could plan their schedules around it and NC. had fleets earlier in the day that
saw a lot of people clone jump to alliance staging.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m sure the ship selection probably raised a few eyebrows.
My initial plan was to fly only the armor Comets, but I had space in my Occator’s
hold and decided to fill it with some ships I might use solo or on another
fleet. The Comets were MWD fit and the Merlins were AB fit, but in most cases
we were fighting on the button of FW plexes anyways, right in scram range.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This was one of those pre-planning mistakes you can make
that dramatically affects the success of a fleet. I didn’t expect to go through
as many ships as we did during the night, but I should have planned better for
the possibility by sticking to one – either MWD or AB – in case we got into a
mixed fleet situation.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Suffice to say, it wasn’t the only mistake that happened
that night.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Unlike most of our roams, I and our ships weren’t in our
lowsec staging, so one of my corpmates led them on the trek to Kinakka.
Naturally, of course, the route took them directly through an impromptu
gatecamp by Mordus Angels in Nannaras that was larger than us, consisting of a
Huginn, Lachesis, Scythe, a Vagabond, and a bunch of Cynabals. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We began to reship, but stopped when we realized we simply
didn’t have the numbers. Really, it was
the Lachesis and Huginn that made the difference there. With the Huginn webbing
any tackle that got close to ther Scythe, we wouldn’t be able to apply enough
damage to kill it, and the Lachesis would limit our ability to disengage
without taking losses, all while the nano cruisers pumped their dps into us.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Instead, I called for our ships to punch on through and
continue down the pipe to Kinakka. We lost only one Comet as we snuck by, which
I could replace at the end of the journey. It was a loss, but I wanted to get
us over to where we’d find most of our action and away from that fleet. I
honestly can’t feel too bad about that loss… it was an acceptable one.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The rest of the trip to Kinakka was uneventful, and when we
arrived, we replenished our ships and I set a destination down the southern
lowsec pipe through Black Rise towards Hikkoken. As we undocked, dscan revealed
a Cynabal sitting at a plex. Our first target of the night…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I admit, I was expecting him to be nano-fit. If we could
catch him, it shouldn’t be too difficult of a task to take him down. We warped
around a bit, but eventually landed within 20 of him. I put out the call to get
tackle, and set about an oblique approach to hopefully avoid much of his
damage.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It didn’t end very well. While his speed was lower than
expected, I assumed we simply caught him before he was able to burn too far
away; we were quick with overheating our MWDs and getting within scram range. A
lucky warp-in, right?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We were doing decent damage to his shields – about what I’d
expect from a nano-fit – and then we ran into the brick wall that was his armor
tank. He melted three of us – my Svipul, a Comet, and a Merlin – as I pulled us
back.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It was a bloody nose, for sure. Taking down that Cynabal
would have matched the cost of the entire fleet. My mistake really comes down
to the AB/MWD split between our ships. If we’d have been able to get on top of
him once I got initial tackle, we could have applied our full DPS. The Merlins,
though, were out of the fight, and that made a big difference. The effort was
doomed from the start.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Reshipping, we undocked to find more targets, again in
Kinakka, which was turning out to be quite the hotbed of activity. I saw a
Coercer on dscan, and narrowed him down to a small complex. Everyone aligned
while I warped in, and as I saw him sitting on the acceleration gate, I called
for the fleet to warp and got tackle.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My shields disappeared quickly, but that’s to be expected
when flying an armor Comet against EM/thermal beams. My armor was holding up
well until an Ishkur and Wolf showed up to help the Coercer. The fleet arrived
shortly after, but I went down (second loss of the night) and the trio of
enemies went through the rest of the fleet one by one. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We lost five in that engagement. A battle Venture, a
Punisher, a Merlin, and two Comets. We were five, they were three, but we were
all T1/faction, while they were T2 frigates and a destroyer. It was a pretty
fair fight, and we got trounced. My mistake here was in not coming in as a
group. Already, we knew they’d fight us, and it would have made a lot more
sense to be patient, warp everyone together, and act as a unit. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So far, the night wasn’t turning out very well. Yet, we were
having fun. I sent around another batch of ships and we went out again for a
little revenge. Before we could, though we ran across a beam Confessor hunting
us.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At this point, I was fed up with being prey. Another
corpmate was joining from Tamo in a Hecate, a much-needed dps boost to our
small fleet. As he entered system, we were pinning down the Confessor. Our
fleet was in a small plex safe from him, with our Hecate and I trying to pin
him down. He was exactly aligned with a celestial though, so I warped off and
back at range, landing almost on top of him. He was a true glass cannon, having
only one active repper for tank.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A Confessor for a Merlin? Now that’s a good trade. Things
were starting to get back on track.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Very quickly after the Confessor fight, the Coercer and Wolf
returned, this time with a Hawk instead of an Ishkur. Considering the range and
options available to us, we primaried the Wolf. Things were honestly looking
grim for us. We lost a Merlin and Comet quickly as we burned through the Wolf’s
armor, but we were able to maintain tackle on everything. Once it was <a href="https://zkillboard.com/kill/56841832/">down</a>, we turned to the Hawk;
he <a href="https://zkillboard.com/kill/56841839/">exploded</a> the exact
moment I did in my Comet. By this point, we were down to just a Hecate and two
Merlins, but we were able to finish off the <a href="https://zkillboard.com/kill/56841846/">Coercer</a>. We killed 116 mil for
66 mil lost. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
More importantly, though, that fight and the Confessor kill
gave me some well-needed confidence. The space between the Confessor kill that
started the whole thing and the Coercer going down was three minutes. In that
time, we adapted to changing situations, took out a kiter that had punched us
in the nose, and killed the whole fleet that had given us some trouble earlier
on. The difference was 450 dps from the Hecate.
That’s really not a big swing in the grand scheme of things.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It was a good way to end the night, even if the beginning
didn’t happen exactly according to plan. Ultimately, the fault was mine. I set
up two different kinds of prop mods. I warped us in bit by bit.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Generally, I’m starting to see that my FC style is to take
chances. I tend to fly the way I play poker- if I’ve got more than a 51% chance
of winning, I’ll take the fight. In this case, Ishkur/Wolf/Coercer versus our
fleet was too tough, but Hawk/Wolf/Coercer was successful (with the Hecate
being the difference-maker). It wasn’t by any means a safe choice to engage
with T1 resists on all our frigates. Likewise, with the Confessor. That ship
was fitted to kite frigates specifically, and I bought… a frigate fleet to
attack it (in that case, the Hecate wasn’t the difference-maker). In both
cases, it was a lot of fun. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
I’m starting to see that I’m likely going to take losses,
and that’s okay, so long as I avoid situations like the beginning of that roam,
and focus more on the end.Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-24069447330838839662016-11-02T08:08:00.000-04:002016-11-02T08:08:03.535-04:00Regional Local<div class="MsoNormal">
This week during Eve Vegas, CCP expressed their long-held
displeasure with local as an intel tool, but that they weren’t ready to launch
a comprehensive change to the mechanics.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At the core of the problem is a need to communicate with
people in the same system that doesn’t also announce the presence of new pilots
entering that system. Some players simply advocate wormhole local, in which
players don’t show up until they speak, but CCP has been resistant to this in
the past for all areas of space, and I tend to think this would take something
special away from wormhole space.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At the same time, CCP expressed a general dissatisfaction
with the ease of null ratting isk generation and the speed of level 5 mission
blitzing. In both cases, a new pilot entering local is a cause for concern,
albeit much more so for null ratting. I don’t think the payouts are the problem
as much as the early warning detection local provides; when you feel incredibly
safe, it’s very easy to earn isk in null, perhaps too easy.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, let’s kill two birds with one stone: Regional Local.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Regional local would work this way: rather than the local
channel we all know and love, in null-sec, “local” would actually be the
regional channel (which already exists in game). Players can communicate in
this channel, and while new players will enter and leave as they travel through
the region, individual system intel won’t be provided by the game.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This system would have a number of big advantages. First,
it’d provide a means of communicating with an entire region, something never
utilized now. Market visibility is already limited to regions, and accepting
public contracts requires you to be in that region; it seems fair to make the
basic chat channel regional as well. It’d certain create some emergent “Help
me!” gameplay happen, as a pilot cries out in local across several systems to
draw attention from unallied players in a last, desperate gasp for help. That’s
just a recipe for fun.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But it’ll also allow two big areas of communication that
will help the game. For regions split among multiple groups, seeing the
activity in a region will help make space feel a little bit more connected, and
make you feel a little more familiar with the pilots around you. That gives
plenty of opportunity for tension and rubbing people the wrong way, too. Right
now, most of our enemies are just Dotlan or killboard statistics; let’s add
some real flavor to them.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
During trench warfare, armies would shout across no man’s
land to each other all the time; it became a real problem a times, and once
even resulted in both sides getting together to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_truce">celebrate Christmas</a>
without orders from their superiors. Except for immediately before fleet
battles in the same system, that doesn’t happen in Eve, only on Reddit. I’d
love to see the long-term effects of two sides contesting a region constantly
chattering and smacktalking with each other in regional. I think it’d make for
a powerful propaganda and morale-sapping tool in an alliance’s arsenal.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Could you imagine, for instance, being in the same region as
Test? The sperging in regional alone would be enough to drive a war. You want
content drivers? This would be a content driver. It’d even give a reason to go
after the alliances basing out of NPC-null to harass sov holders; purge them to
shut them the hell up!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Most importantly, though, regional local would preserve the
important communication tool Eve needs while rendering it far less useful as an
intel tool. That’d be a great benefit to the game, I think, making ratting that
much harder and requiring more attention, while giving a boost to roaming
fleets. You’d still see them coming, but you wouldn’t know exactly where or
when they’ll strike.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
An elegant, simple solution is often the best.</div>
Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-51513908829699124132016-10-31T10:07:00.000-04:002016-10-31T10:07:05.621-04:00FC Lessons: My First Roam, Gallente-Strong<div class="MsoNormal">
A few weeks ago, I ran my first full, pre-planned corp fleet
with a defined doctrine. Compared to my <a href="http://targetcaller.blogspot.com/2016/08/fc-lessons-room-for-improvement.html">first
roam</a>, this was a wholly different kettle of fish. In the first place, we
had about three times the number of pilots, but beyond that, we weren’t doing a
kitchen sink fleet.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Instead, we were flying armor Comets with Navitas logi. It
took me a long time to come up with exactly the right doctrine to use. I knew I
wanted to keep our options open, and a lot of our Friday night roams involved
novice FW complexes. It wouldn’t due to fly anything but T1 frigates; a mixed
fleet would work for nullsec, but we’d more often than not find ourselves
unable to field our full strength and be easily prone to being split up.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But, my ships needed some survivability. A Comet is ideally
suited to hull-tanking, but one of my corpmates shared a nice armor fit that
benefited from logi. So, I quickly added a logi to the doctrine. The Navitas
could field a decent tank for a T1 frigate logi. Gotta love those Gallente for
survivability.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At first, I considered bringing a tackler ship as well, but
quickly discarded the idea. Any T1 tackle ship I considered performed less
effectively at the task than the Comets. Why overcomplicate things?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It ended up being a good decision, and a good night.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
We had between 15 and 18 pilots throughout the fleet,
including a number of current or former FCs to help back me up and serve as
scouts. They proved invaluable for helping provide guidance. I can’t overstress
the value of FC mentoring; without it, I’m not sure the fleet would have been
as successful.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Before we undocked, I took a page from NC. and ran through
the fleet description, explaining what pilots should expect:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That we were flying armor-tanked Comets, and pilots should
expect their shields to melt quickly, followed by their armor lasting much
longer</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That our Comets required us to be in blaster range right on
top of our targets; we should approach or orbit at 500 m.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That we had logi and should broadcast for armor reps the
moment we were mass-yellow-boxed, since reps only land at the end of the rep
cycle (I also reminded newer pilots how to do that).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That our logi should seek to position themselves on the
other side of us and the enemy fleet to keep a good position (our logi pilots
were experienced, and got this immediately)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That we were passing through lowsec and should attack only
“flashy” pilots on gates; our frigates could take only about 3-4 volleys from
gate guns.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That we were going to be fighting in faction warfare space,
and described the mechanics of acceleration gates, including “sliding” and
warp-to-fleetmate limitations.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This pre-flight debrief made such an impact on me that I
decided I wanted to make it part of my standard FC procedure, testing it out on
this fleet. Any time you fly an unfamiliar ship, it’s hard to understand its
capabilities: how quickly it turns, how fast damage falls off and what that means
to orbiting and keeping at range, and how much punishment it can take. I found
it helpful for myself – I rarely fly armor ships in small gang – and I heard no
complaints from anyone else, so I’ll definitely do it for future fleets.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Once we undocked, we started to make our way to Tama, taking
in the sights along the way. We had a boosting Loki in fleet to make our scrams
stretch that much further and our armor that much thicker. Very quickly, we
scored a few frigate kills and a <a href="https://zkillboard.com/kill/56603787/">Vexor</a>:
a good start to the night.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ten minutes later, one of my fleet got antsy and went off on
his own two jumps away from us and died before we could come to rescue him. He
took a shot at something and it didn’t work. He did it on his own initiative,
so I don’t consider that a fleet loss.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My first FC test came when our fleet came across a
remote-rep Dragoon fleet with a Sentinel kicker in Sujarento. Now, at the time,
I didn’t realize it was a remote-rep fleet. However, three Dragoons and a
Sentinel could potentially inflict a lot of damage to our dps boats, and burn
through our logi before reps could land. It was by no means a certain fight.
But, I had a plan. I’d primary the Sntinel to remove the ewar from the fight,
then burn down the three Dragoons in turn.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When we landed, the fight went pretty much as expected. The <a href="https://zkillboard.com/kill/56604283/">Sentinel</a> dropped almost
immediately, but over the course of the next three minutes, we slowly whittled
down the Dragoons. We lost one Comet initially, then the enemy fleet began to
attack our logi, which held superbly throughout most of the fight.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Killing the first Dragoon was the most difficult, since the
other two Dragoons were pumping surprise reps into him. He <a href="https://zkillboard.com/kill/56604289/">took 13k damage</a> before he
died. The second one tanked us for <a href="https://zkillboard.com/kill/56604292/">a bit longer</a>, but the last
Dragoon, without reps to help sustain him, <a href="https://zkillboard.com/kill/56604294/">died</a> after taking a mere 5k
damage. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It was an enjoyable fight, and a profitable one. We lost 50
million and killed 190 million, including some nice deadspace remote rep drops
we took as loot. For me personally, I was pleased at my target calling and
decision to take the fight against a T2 ewar and three destroyers, a fleet I
could be forgiven for believing could punch through us before reps landed.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I also kept my poise and calm during the fight, calling out
primaries and secondaries smoothly and reacting to the changing situation. I
remembered to ask logi how we were holding, repeated commands for easy
comprehension, and remembered to ask for the fleet to call out their points so
no one escaped. The logi operated with skill, and everyone knew what to do. It
went off very smoothly.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The night progressed, and we scored a number of other kills
of opportunity. In Vlillirier, we came across an <a href="https://zkillboard.com/kill/56605026/">Omen Navy Issue</a> and <a href="https://zkillboard.com/kill/56605015/">Hawk</a> running a medium plex
together, which we took down for the cost of a Slicer and Crusader. Again,
that’s a trade I’ll take, losing two ships that tanked no more than 2.5k for a
faction cruiser and dangerous Hawk.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Less than an hour after killing them the first time, we came
across the same remote rep Dragoon fleet again, with <a href="http://evf-eve.com/services/brcat/?s=45319&b=7252083&e=15&t=e">similar
results</a>. This time, though, while they took out both of our logi, we took
them down much easier, with similar target calling and results. RP/Sonum 2,
Immediate Destruction 0. Regardless of the result, I have to give credit to
them for not only taking on the larger (albeit cheaper ship) fleet not once,
but twice. Kudos, guys.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We headed back home for the night, with me feeling pretty
pleased. As we made our way to Nannaras, we ran into a larger fleet that I
wisely decided not to engage; they were flying much bigger and more powerful
ships, so I turned the fleet over to one of the more experienced FCs as we
re-shipped to Gilas to chase after them. Unfortunately, by the time we
returned, they were gone. Still… knowing when to fight and when to flee is, I’m
told, an important skill.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As a whole, I was highly pleased with this, my first corp
fleet of any size. I made good decisions about when to engage, we took down a
number of good kills, and in any individual fight we lost no more than two
ships while clearing the field. I’m proud of myself on how I functioned, on the
whole.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I say, “on the whole” for a very good reason. As we were on
our way back for the night, one fleet member noticed that he wasn’t getting
links in the second squad. So, we dug a little deeper. The Loki was in Fleet
command, with myself in wing command so I could wing warp everyone when
tactically necessary. All the squads had commanders too. What was the problem?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I trained Command Ships long before the rebalance that made
all of the leadership skills prerequisites, so I never really trained up many
of those skills. Will the impending shift in command bursts, I’m kind of glad I
didn’t. Except for the Wing Command skill, which I apparently never trained
past level 1.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That’s right, boys and girls. While Eve is mostly about soft
skills, experience, and decision-making, it is still a little bit about
skillbook-skills. And mine didn’t include the ability to pass boosts to as many
squads as we had. The whole fleet, we all thought we had links because I didn’t
have Wing Command to at least 2.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At two points, we missed getting a point on targets by 2 km;
with the links working correctly, we would have gotten them. It’s highly likely
that in both of the engagements with the Dragoons, we would’ve probably only
lost one ship in each, perhaps none if the difference in armor was enough to
buy another second for reps to land.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I don’t fly with links when I roam on my own, and I’ve never
been in wing command before, but you can bet I queued up Wing Command the
moment I realized what happened. Lesson learned.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
From a decision-making standpoint, though, I felt in-control
and calm the whole time, and made the correct decisions about engagements.
That’s a big win and a boost to my confidence.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s only a start, but it’s a good start, made possible by lots
of good support around me. Our scouts were great, our logi were rock stars, and
the other FCs backing me up did a great job of helping provide timely, relevant
information, then letting me make the call. Thanks to all of them for the
support.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
10/10 would do it again.</div>
Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-21756238822622297472016-10-29T17:56:00.002-04:002016-10-29T17:57:06.601-04:00Ascension Delayed<div class="MsoNormal">
The Ascension expansion – there’s so much in this update
that it certainly deserves the title, compared to “update” – as been delayed by
a week to November 15. From those who have been testing out some of the new
features on Sisi, it sounds like there are still plenty of bugs to work out,
but I’m not certain which yet.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, alpha clones won’t hit for an extra week. An extra week
for corporations to prepare, PLEX prices to rise, the injector market to get
ready for a sudden increase in demand, and CCP marketing to fret over the level
of success they can expect.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Will alpha clones cause an influx of players? Even two weeks
before launch, I still can’t say. To read Reddit, a lot of players are
intrigued by the possibilities. Will that translate into an actual increase of
players in game? And if so, how many?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’ve seen a number of screenshots of CCP trying its best to
push players to Omega status at every possible opportunity, and I can imagine
that will become tiresome after a while. How much of that will players endure
before they start to feel annoyed? And, leaving alone the user interface issue,
will single-race limited gameplay be engaging enough to keep people either
logging in long term or making the jump to omega status?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At the same time, CCP is set to launch industrial citadels
as well. That alone would be a huge sea-change for an expansion. At the moment,
industrial citadels seem to leave the small-scale industrialist in a lurch,
with the cost of the smallest citadel is going to be over five times the cost
of a POS equivalent, and that represents a much larger risk.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’ve often thought we need a deployable industrial option
similar to a mobile depot for pop-up industrial options. Sure, put whatever
limitations you’d like on them, but right now, a billion isk to set up an
attackable asset for an industrial corp really isn’t a comparable option. I
suspect we could see a whole industry develop around wardeccing industrial
corps for their shiny citadel killmails.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yet, something else strikes me. I wonder at the timing. We
have alpha clones and industrial structures happening simultaneously, both of
which will be hugely transformative to the game. Given their importance and the
impact they’ll (likely) have on the game, less-than-two months’ advance warning
really isn’t very much at all.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Why shove them both into the same expansion? On the one
hand, maybe it’s simply a desire to provide something big and new (industrial
arrays) to provide a reason for lapsed players to log back in – particularly
something for non-PvPers after years of PvP-heavy content.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But what if it’s something more? CCP is working on replacing
player activity with NPC mining fleets, effectively populating New Eden with
surrogate players that other players can interact with. Alpha clones is a tacit
recognition that having a player in the game for free is better than not
logging in at all, due to the benefits to other, paying customers.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s pretty clear that CCP wants more activity in-game, and
they want it NOW. If there’s a product strategy document being passed around
CCP headquarters, “Increase concurrent logins” is high on their priority list.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ascension is clearly meant to generate a lot of buzz and
appeal to a wide audience, and it’s looking to be the biggest update for the
past several months, at least since the launch of Citadel, and I’d argue even
larger than that because of alpha clones. Rather than wait and split off
industrial arrays, CCP is doing everything possible to load November 15 with as
much meaningful content as possible.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
That’s either deeply troubling about the player trend
projections being passed around CCP HQ, or reassuring in regards to the extent
CCP is willing to go to correct for player count.Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-3718664647654944292016-10-25T23:31:00.000-04:002016-10-25T23:31:31.211-04:00When Should You Let Your Kids Play Eve?<div class="MsoNormal">
I try to stay connected with Eve when I travel and can’t
actually log in. I’ll check my alliance forums, our corp Discord, update
Evenova, read through Reddit, and check zkill for activity. We all have a few
minutes here or there to stay informed, and when you’re unable to log in, those
snippets of info are like water to a man in the desert.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This week, I read a comment on Reddit about how a man and
his son would use Eve lingo in the real world. That got me thinking about the
background of that kind of situation.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At first, I thought about how very few people are really
suited to playing Eve. It’s an unforgiving game that doesn’t protect you either
from the wickedness of other people or the consequences of your actions.
Rather, it rubs your face in both. Most people aren’t made with stern enough
stuff to endure that for entertainment. On the one hand, I’d deem it a sign of
good parenting that his son enjoys Eve enough to not only play it, but
internalize the lingo. To me, that reflects well on his parenting.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On the other hand, he lets his son play Eve. That’s just not
right on so many levels. This really is a twisted game, with the full display
of humanity on display.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, is he a great or a terrible dad? At what age is it okay
to let your kids play Eve?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
We have to set some ground rules in our considerations,
though. Really, when we’re talking about “letting” your kids play Eve, we have
to constrain it to under 18 years of age. Any more than that and, well, it’s
not really your choice anymore, is it? While some parents do still control what
their kids do after that age, that’s a separate issue, I think.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And while we’re at it, we should also exclude mental,
social, or biological challenges (e.g. chemical imbalances) that might hamper a
person’s ability to cope with in-game content from our consideration. More
often than not, parents need to consider each case individually, so any
discussion of generalities really doesn’t apply.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And one last one. Ultimately, we each know our children
best, so this isn’t about judgment. Rather, I’m curious if it’s even possible
to come up with some standard age/threshold/benchmark to use to gauge whether
your child is ready for Eve.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Eve offers the opportunity to teach a lot of critical
lessons to kids. Here are just a few:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal">Ultimately,
you are responsible for yourself. No one is going to save you from your
mistakes.</li>
<li class="MsoNormal">The
greatest profits and successes come through constant effort.</li>
<li class="MsoNormal">Be
suspicious of those you don’t know, and guard against those you do.</li>
<li class="MsoNormal">We
each create our own sense of morality and find our own way in the world,
based on each action we take. Morality is a choice we make daily, not a
credo to adopt.</li>
<li class="MsoNormal">There’s
always someone out there who is bigger, stronger, faster, smarter, or has
more friends than you.</li>
<li class="MsoNormal">OODA
Loops don’t just exist in Willy Wonka. Constantly reassess your situation
to verify that your decision is still the correct one.</li>
<li class="MsoNormal">Failure
isn’t something to be avoided. Rather, embrace and learn from it, so you
can grow stronger.</li>
<li class="MsoNormal">Weakness
and optimism don’t lead to success; brutally honest reflection and direct
action do.</li>
<li class="MsoNormal">Delaying
gratification often leads to greater satisfaction.</li>
<li class="MsoNormal">Poor
actions will always come back to bite you, even if it’s years from now.</li>
<li class="MsoNormal">The
innocent don’t always win; in fact, the innocent, the defenseless, and the
peaceful more often than not make themselves into victims than martyrs.</li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And that’s just a few off the top of my head. I often say
Eve is a mature game, one that operates at a higher level than most out there;
the above lessons are why. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As a parent, I find a common thread spreading through the
rest of the media, societal pressures, and the tone of political and
sociological conversation – namely that the government/community/family/company
owes us certain things. To put it more bluntly, that the keys to our happiness
lie beyond ourselves. We’re given a definition of success, we’re given a
pattern we’re supposed to follow, and increasingly we’re told that the
government owes us food, shelter, health care, electricity, etc. etc. etc.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Eve, on the other hand, tells us a different lesson: we owe
you nothing. You earn what you get through working harder, smarter, faster, or
longer than the other guy. You’re the agent of action that drives you forward
or allows you to drown.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That’s one of the downsides, though. While that thought is
incredibly empowering, it only really works on you after you pass through a
period of despair. To know that you’re responsible, that no one will come to
save you, that you have to stand on your own two feet and make your future
rather than have it given to you… those who do learn it are consistently
happier than those who don’t.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But it’s a hard thing to learn. So many new players never
get beyond it. Why? Because they buy into the lessons society tries to teach –
that your country cares about you, that eveyrthing’s going to turn out okay,
that you can be and have anything you want just by wishing and trying really
hard, that the good are always rewarded and the wicked punished.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Only, that’s not how the real world operates. Sometimes, the
hero does in the first act and the story ends. Often, the shoot-from-the-hip
ragtag band of righteous rebels is massacred during their first “it’s so crazy
it just might work” plan. Generally, institutionalized abuse is never exposed
and punished.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When should you pull back that curtain and expose the truth
of that harsh fact? When are they capable of taking the right lesson from it:
that the way to deal with a fickle and uncaring world is to become content
within yourself and understand your own power to control your reactions, your
decisions, and your priorities, if not what happens to you?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Beyond that key lesson, though, Eve has a lot of more
prosaic dangers. Eve has trash talk to bait people into a fight. It has
nastiness, deception, and betrayal. Some of that provides a good, fictitious
lesson that maps over well to the real world, but too often players cross the
line into unacceptable activity.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And then, there are the darker bits. How often have we heard
homophobic, misogynistic, or racist comments in fleet, on r/eve, or in local?
How many times have players linked porn in fleet chat? We have real-life
threats and character assassination across various media. Every dark part of
the Internet is exposed in the very same player interactions that make the game
so appealing.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On the one hand, I’d love my daughters to learn to rely upon
their own abilities, recognize their power to control their own lives, and
patiently work towards goals stretching across months and years.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But do I want my daughters to be exposed to all the twisted
things players post, say, and do to each other beyond the extent necessary to
play the game? I certainly don’t. I
honestly can’t say when I’d be okay with them being exposed to that on such a
regular basis. Sure, I could monitor what groups they join, but that’s only a
check, not surety.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And yet, if we did take steps to exclude all that
unpleasantness from Eve, it wouldn’t be Eve anymore.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Is Eve appropriate for children (anyone under 18)? Are the
great lessons within the game enough to balance out the strong negatives you
can find?Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-51392244163381080802016-10-19T09:48:00.002-04:002016-10-19T09:48:46.664-04:00Searching for Salvation in All The Wrong Places<div class="MsoNormal">
I am an American. This background influences my perspective on events. This is going to
be important later on, so I wanted to lay this fact down right from the get-go.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You see, a lot of things need to be said
regarding some of the very concerning commentary emerging out of the Eve casino
ban. Frankly, I’m somewhat disgusted by some of the attitudes I’m seeing.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I debated on whether I should post this article, but in the
end, I decided I had to, because it isn’t as much about an American perspective
as it is about how we perceive Eve. And that most assuredly relates to the game
we all love.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There are two kind of people in the world: those
who meet resistance and choose to strengthen themselves, and those who run to
others to save them.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<h3>
<b><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">History Time</span></b></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
First, I want to start with a history lesson, because the
philosophy upon which <st1:country-region w:st="on">America</st1:country-region>
was founded is absolutely critical to understanding why this distinction
matters.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The American colonists started out as typical British
subjects. Sure, you had a variety of other cultures there as well, but
predominantly the attitude that drove the country forward at the time was
typical of western civilization at the time. You had divine right of kings
being questioned, yet still defined by a rigid hierarchical class society.
Generally speaking, you were supposed to know your role and stick to it, with
social pressure assuring that everyone of a higher class let you know how
worthless you really were.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Typically speaking, the government was seen as imposing
order in a Hobbes-esque way. Men were brutish savages, brought to heel by the
power of a strong government. Generally speaking, the government was seen as a
force of order, forcing he unruly masses into some form of society.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This system was far from perfect, but whatever imperfections
it had were brushed under the rug. The intelligista and powerful cited the fact
that the government and upper classes were responsible for all of the civic
projects, so didn’t that just prove that society was creating structures to
better people?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After a couple generations, the American colonists started
to realize that all of those European structures didn’t count for much in <st1:place w:st="on">North America</st1:place>. They were 3 months away from them, and
they needed solutions to their problems NOW. Indians were attacking? Great
Brittan wasn’t going to save them; they needed to rely upon themselves, the
resources near them, and their fellow colonists.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This created self-reliance, a pathological understanding
that – like Ender engaged in his eponymous game – no one was going to save
them. They needed to lift themselves up by their own bootstraps. They had to
make it work somehow, and that left little room for proper adherence to the
forms, which had to be obeyed in every country in <st1:place w:st="on">Europe</st1:place>.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Naturally, this left the European elite feeling as if the
colonists were a bunch of uncultured savages. They didn’t do things the right
way. They didn’t listen to the enlightened opinions of the leadership back
home. Why change what had worked for centuries?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Only, the circumstances had drastically altered, and what
worked in <st1:place w:st="on">Europe</st1:place> didn’t work in the colonies.
They started viewing the government’s attempts to square-peg-round-hole them as
tyrannical, and the European governments increasingly sought to “restore the
proper balance” with increasingly onerous and brutal discipline. If the
colonists were so far gone that they were actively resisting the British way,
well, they had to be humbled before the wisdom of the official, governmental
way of doing things.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The effect, though, was to harden the colonists against the
British. Government was no longer a provider of order and structure, but a
noose around the neck of freedom and ingenuity – the two things that were
absolutely essential to survival on the frontier During the war that ensued,
the attitude that government is a cancer, an evil that will always be abused by
those in power, became ingrained into our souls.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When that attitude began to manifest, that’s when
“Americans” were created. We started to believe that all power derives from the
people, that the people had a right to eliminate and replace the government –
including through violent means when no other option remained – and that
government “even in its best state is but a necessary evil; in its worst state
an intolerable one.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, you had a people whose history and experience taught
them to rely upon themselves and look inward for solutions. It wasn’t
government or structure that led to the prosperity in early <st1:country-region w:st="on">America</st1:country-region>, but
the naked ambition and will of individually both separately and working
together that bent this land to our will.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But, when you add legal power to that society, you create a
monster. Sometimes it serves your desires, but you always need to watch it.
Like the elephants in <st1:place w:st="on">Hannibal</st1:place>’s
army, you could use them, but you always needed to keep a spike handy to drive
into its neck if it starts to get out of hand. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<h3>
<b><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Personal
Responsibility</span></b></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As you can imagine, over the years, this has changed
dramatically. American sentiment has been dragged by the rest of the world into
a more liberal outlook. Social programs, unemployment benefits, modern
expectations of workers rights have all changed this, to the point where you’d
hardly find a person who believes in full self-reliance anymore (even I don’t
believe it).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But the kernel of that remains. We believe passionately in
personal responsibility, that if you suffer some misfortune, you should first
reflect on what you should have done differently. You lost a job? It doesn’t
serve to bemoan the bad economic conditions in your neighborhood or claim “it’s
not my fault!” Instead, you recall how you could have kept your job search
network and resume up and running at the first sign of unease and sought to
move before you were forced out. You had a heart attack? You don’t whine about
your genetics making you pre-disposed to heart disease. Rather, you change your
diet, exercise, accept the roll of the dice you have, and live as healthy of a
life as you can.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The legacy of American history is that shitty things will
happen to you, and you can’t control that. But you can control how you react,
whether you passively accept it or struggle against that incoming challenge,
and whether you choose to grow stronger or make excuses. That’s the personal
responsibility. Even if you point to something external that causes you
problems, you’ve got three fingers pointed back at yourself.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m not saying that all Americans manifest this belief, or
even that a majority do. I’m only saying this is a cultural artifact that
influences anyone born and raised in our society. The idea of it is interwoven
into our culture. For me, it influenced me very heavily. I don’t think it would
have if I’d not been born and raised here. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<h3>
<b><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Gambling as an Evil</span></b></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Here’s where we start to tied back to Eve. I’ve seen a lot
of people condemning the “evils of gambling”, and praising the end of Eve
gambling because it’s righteous and moral to do so. Let’s leave aside the fact
that CCP’s decision to ban Eve gambling is a result of real-world legal
developments and has nothing to do with moralizing. We still have this belief
that gambling is an evil and that Eve was corrupted or twisted by its presence.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Hearing this – with the background of the first half of this
article in my mind – incensed me. Gambling is not an evil. It’s an activity, an
inert thing that people can choose to do, or choose not to do. You go to a
corporation’s property, use their electricity, are dealt cards/dice/chips by
their employees, sit in their chairs, and drink their drinks. In exchange, they
take a cut of the stakes (the rake) for providing you the venue and opportunity
to wager with someone else. Both of you know what the rake is, what the rules
of the games are, and what the odds are before you place your first bet (if you
don’t, you’re stupid, and there’s no overcoming that).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This is not an evil. This is a business transaction over a
service. There is nothing inherently wrong in it. And, in fact, skillful and
intelligent players can play some of these games to gain profit (poker, for
instance), albeit not many of them. You’re still gaining an experience.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There is evil, though, but it doesn’t reside with the
gambling. The evil lies in the hearts of the people too weak-willed to control
themselves. When a person gambles away rent money and loses his house, the
fault lies with the gambler, not the activity, the corporation, or the other
gamblers he plays with.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you make a decision related to the dispersal of your
money that you later regret, you are at fault. You are the weak one. You are
the problem. You don’t have the right to blame someone else who created the
situation for your inner weaknesses to be put on display. The fault is yours;
fix it in yourself.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I enjoy gambling, particularly Texas Hold’em. All-time, I’ve won
much more than I’ve lost. It took me lots of time to practice and refine my
strategy, awareness, and knowledge of the game. Yes, I’m still subject to bad
luck, but by avoiding putting money down in situations where I’m statistically
unlikely to win, I mitigate the effect of luck on my game.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Regardless of how I do, though, I’m the agent of action, of
choice. I choose to play. I choose each bet, and whether to fold. I am in
control, because I’m a well-adjusted human being.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I lose sometimes. I lost big playing Eve-bet during last
year’s hockey playoff season, to the tune of 14 billion. Do you
know when I did when that happened? I stopped. I hunkered down and worked to
make that isk back. I didn’t bitch and moan because Eve-bet created a situation
in which I lost that isk. I chose to participate. I took a chance to win about 18 billion, and I lost. Them's the breaks.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Anyone who holds the belief that gambling is an evil and
should be banned/made illegal ultimately is saying, “When I lose more than I
want to, it’s not my fault. They should be held responsible for my internal
weaknesses, and I want to punish them for my mistakes.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That’s cowardly, it’s untrue, and it represents an alarming
shift in attitude. It’s a turn outward for salvation. “I can’t control myself,
so the government should come save me!”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For it to occur within Eve Online, a libertarian,
unforgiving game that seeks to put the player squarely in the chair of
responsibility? The commentators and smuggers holding this belief should be
ashamed of themselves. They’re acting like sheep, not the wolves they’re
supposed to be.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
By all means, ban RMTers because of the way they spent their
isk in violation of the TOS. From the content of CCP’s statement, IWI were
RMTing and deserved what they got.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
By all means, argue that casino profits aren’t disruptable
within the game and create an unfair, secure isk stream that can be used to
directly affect in-game events. You can make a case for that, and it really
comes down to a tug-of-war between two reasonable aspects of the game
(disruptability of income vs. nature of the sandbox).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
By all means, defend the loss of entities like Eve-bet as
being thrown out with the bathwater, or bemoan the loss of pretty much every
single entity who ever funded player-run events.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
By all means, if you can find a blogger who actually never
logs in and only engages with the game because of advertising fees (I believe
this is a strawman, and these people don’t actually exist), discuss how this
will affect them, and even mock them for the end of their game style.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But keep your moralizing about gambling. It only reveals
your own weakness and desire for someone else to come in and save you. You
clearly miss the point of Eve. This is a game in which you are responsible for
what happens to you. You lost a ship? You did something stupid or negligent.
Maybe you didn’t check d-scan, bring a scout, fly the right ship, etc. CCP
doesn’t come in to save you when you make a market mistake or afk on a gate and
get podded.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Granted, that’s my opinion, according to my eyes as I see
it. I understand that many throughout the world won’t look at it that way;
that’s why I provided the background about why Americans tend to view things
differently. I know people think we’re crazy for our views about guns, but it
comes from a history of pathological mistrust of government that has served us
incredibly well over the years.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In this case, I’m very disturbed about what the tone of
arguments revealed in comment sections and Reddit posts reveals about the motivations
and perspectives of Eve players as a whole. I thought Eve was a game in which –
despite all of the collectivist tendencies and erosions of individual will
throughout the world – people of a similar mindset and predisposed to believing
in the power of will to reshape their future could gather together and indulge
in a lost attitude – the belief that we are responsible, and through that
responsibility can control our futures.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m starting to question that, and it’s sad. I always took
comfort from the thread of personal responsibility, self-determination, and
suspicion of authority that wove through the video games of the past decade.
Yet, even in among the select group of Eve players, we have people who are
looking for others to save them from themselves.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
A little bit more steel is lost from our collective spines.</div>
Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com27tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-2016650993361413392016-10-16T09:51:00.001-04:002016-10-16T09:52:41.204-04:00Meet and Greet with Rixx JavixThere are no Eve players who live near me. My brother-in-law played just long enough to spark my interest in the game, but he quit quite a few years ago, leaving me all on my own. I keep tossing out "o/" and "stay frosty" on the chance that someone might recognize it, but so far, I haven't had anyone bite.<br />
<br />
I don't enjoy work travel, but when my schedule does require it, I always try to see if I'm heading somewhere with Eve friends to meet up. So far, I've been able to do this once, with Aetius and kamaroune from RP. Good fun was had by all, and the bar owners had to kick us out at the end of the night.<br />
<br />
I really want to make my way to Fanfest or Eve Vegas, though, as soon as my girls are old enough to endure us being potentially stuck several hours (or another country) away and unable to come home immediately. But regional meet-ups are definitely a possibility.<br />
<br />
Earlier this year, Rixx and his wife hosted Steel City Eve in Pittsburgh, my old hometown. I wasn't able to swing it, and I was really disappointed. This weekend, we were in for some family visits, and Rixx and I met up over drinks last night.<br />
<br />
It's easy for Eve players to assume a certain persona when they play. For many, Eve is an escape from real life.l I've known more than one player who expressed that while real life forces him to be polite, he can release it all in Eve. The vast majority of Eve players - even the scammers, pirates, and awoxers - are completely normal, well-adjusted people. The reverse can also be true - seemingly normal folks can be downright frightening in person.<br />
<br />
It's always interesting to meet another writer. Our material is text, and generally speaking, a person's writing style and speaking style differ quite a bit. I, for instance, tend to think in a cloud, not a straight line, so I tend to be all over the place as I talk. But when I sit down and write, it's much more linear (most of the time).<br />
<br />
Yet, I'm happy to report that not only are Rixx Javix and his wife completely normal people, but they seem to be exactly as their online personas suggest. Quite the pair of genuine, friendly people! At the end of a long, tiring day, they were good people to spend some time with having drinks.<br />
<br />
Suffice it to say, I encourage you folks to try to meet as many fellow players as possible. It's always interesting to see that these other players aren't just real people with real personalities, but also pretty cool people to hang out with. I think I'm going to try to do this again.<br />
<br />
And, I'm looking forward to Steel City Eve last year.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv8iPwRHeqn6daleOmtLBjsTDPXFWeggBxeNeNjrQGIsv4czRELDzFkZvUT7UV8xXYbbLzhpPHsjI1MUaYIncVNYpBCVhC_4yWdvAbXIW2MSqsDfRPnUG41qcj3m-rgdz9U8hRTi6-IdeD/s1600/Rixx+and+Talvorian+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv8iPwRHeqn6daleOmtLBjsTDPXFWeggBxeNeNjrQGIsv4czRELDzFkZvUT7UV8xXYbbLzhpPHsjI1MUaYIncVNYpBCVhC_4yWdvAbXIW2MSqsDfRPnUG41qcj3m-rgdz9U8hRTi6-IdeD/s400/Rixx+and+Talvorian+2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rixx Javix and Talvorian Dex</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-72977535120796258522016-10-12T12:52:00.001-04:002016-10-12T20:56:22.492-04:00Eve Gambling Is Gone, But It Isn't EvilThe announcement of changes to the Eve end-user licensing agreement came down today, and the big story is the banning of isk gambling sites. Eve-bet, IWantIsk, etc. are all going to be going away as of Ascension.<br />
<br />
Well, not quite, IWI and another group I've honestly never heard of are being fully banned as of today, with all assets confiscated. Both of them were involved in widespread RMT operations, apparently.<br />
<br />
For the rest, though, finish up your bets and cash out. It's over, folks.<br />
<br />
This has sparked a lot of discussion already among the blogging community, and I have to say I'm disturbed by the turn of some of these arguments. For instance, Wilhelm Arcturus of The Ancient Gaming Noob and member of former CFC alliance TNT referred to Eve gambling site revenue as "ill-gotten gains".<br />
<br />
In considering it, you've got to separate the way isk is generated from how it's spent. I'm not sure I understand how a house cut of isk gambling is ill-gotten in and of itself.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
Previously, I defended IWantIsk against the brutal and incredibly specious assault by members of the CFC on them. They tossed out wild accusations because IWI financed the war that put an end to the CFC. Following the brain drain that left them weak shells of their former selves, they were incapable of dealing with the coalition of enemies that wanted their blood, so they turned to meta attacks against the financiers, IWI, to try to stop the assault.<br />
<br />
At the time, we saw no definitive evidence. They claimed they turned evidence over to CCP, but I doubt it, since a CCP investigation buoyed by clear proof wouldn't have taken eight months. At the time, the only reasonable reaction of anyone who claims to favor "innocent until proven guilty" was to assume IWI was safe until CCP told us otherwise.<br />
<br />
Yet dozens of CFC mouthpieces who clearly never saw any of this supposed evidence were lighting the torches and grabbing their pitchforks. Let's even say everyone saw this proof; they still didn't have access to server-side info that would validate or refute it. Only CCP can really know what happened. This bandwagon condemnation was the sign of a desperate attempt to protect their crumbling empire and revealed the hollow ring of their ideology. Nothing more, nothing less.<br />
<br />
The first time anyone in the Eve blogging community could know they were RMTing with any true certainty was with CCP's announcement earlier today. IWI and this Eve Casino were RMTing in a widespread nature. They're guilty; CCP has confirmed it with their bans.<br />
<br />
Yet that doesn't change the fact that anyone declaring them guilty prior to today was doing so based on belief, not fact. That's okay; you can act based on beliefs. But there's a world of difference between "I believe IWI is RMTing," and "IWI is RMTing". You jumped to conclusions, but those conclusions simply happened to be correct. I hope you're never on a jury on a case involving me.<br />
<br />
Nor does the guilt of IWI or Eve Casino mean proceeds from Eve gambling are "ill-gotten gains". You have to separate the generation of the isk from the distribution of the isk. Providing a service in exchange for isk isn't an inherently "ill-gotten" means. Does it matter what that service is? I'd argue that it isn't.<br />
<br />
The long and short of it is that CFC pilots were upset that a group retaliated against a theft by using its isk to destroy their empire - an empire that everyone else in the game desperately wanted to destroy, and which (many would claim) was richly deserved. Should we consider ratting ill-gotten because World War Bee was partially funded by ratting proceeds? What about market trading? The generation of the isk and the spending of it on WWB is not related to the RMT they did.<br />
<br />
Even though it's no doubt tempting for any player to RMT when they have trillions of isk, having trillions of isk isn't "bad". As humans, temptation is greatest when accompanied by great gain. Thinking you can shut down the means for a person to accrue X amount of isk as a way to limit RMT isn't feasible or fair. To do so sends the message that CCP will punish success.<br />
<br />
By all means, punish those who violate the rules. Feel free to carefully scrutinize those who have developed the means to earn massive amounts of isk. But punishing success, or assuming those with a lot of isk will naturally RMT it, leads to very dark places.<br />
<br />
Now, all of this is academic, of course, because the UK decision about Valve that Nosy Gamer has <a href="http://nosygamer.blogspot.ca/2016/10/valve-threatened-with-sanctions-for.html" target="_blank">chronicled so carefully</a> changes the game entirely. His read on this emerging situation and the way it might affect CCP was very much on-point.<br />
<br />
Anyone who thinks this purging of the eve gambling sites was caused by anything but the possible implications of the UK decision is deluding himself. CCP is taking this action to avoid finding itself in Valve's situation. Full stop. The mere existence of a "cash out" in the form of RMT - even though it's condemned by CCP - is the reason why eve gambling sites are being shut down. Without that means of closing the loop - pulling money out of the system and profiting in real life - the UK would have no stake in the matter of in-game currency gambling. Yet, regardless of whether RMT violates CCP's policies, it isn't illegal in regards to real-world governments, and is thus considered a valid way to put money into something, gamble with it, and pull out more than you put in.<br />
<br />
Doesn't this also mean alliance lotteries to raise funds for different in-game projects are not illegal as well? Don't doubt - the UK's decision to go after Valve is going to leave the Eve community weaker as a result. Most of the prizes for various player-run tournaments, for instance, came from the Eve gambling sites. As of now, there are no RMT bans for Eve-bet, for instance, who helped put on the first weekend of AT coverage and supports nearly every in-game event there is. That isn't going to happen anymore.<br />
<br />
Let's not get into the habit of moralizing because of our in-game political allegiance or a witch hunting about RMT. It's possible to run an Eve gambling site without RMTing - the orderly wind-down of some of the other betting sites proves it. Those who condemn the service type entirely either reveal their bias or are engaging in moralizing, both of which are tedious at best, and negligent at worst.<br />
<br />
IWI was clearly engaged in widespread RMT activity that violated the TOS. They deserved their fate, and I'd like to believe their bans would have come regardless of whether the UK decision on Valve happened or not (I'm an optimist!). But in the same way that every energy provider shouldn't be punished for Enron, I don't revel over every eve gambling site being taken down. Take out the corrupt, but keep the clean.<br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Disclosure: Eve-bet is an advertiser on my site (the image in the upper right corner). At no point have they asked for or I provided the content of any of my articles for review. The subject hasn't even been raised. I also have frequented multiple isk gambling sites in the past, and am generally an advocate of consensual gambling. I believe gambling venues provide a service and take a cut as payment for the opportunity to utilize the service; nothing more, nothing less.</i>Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-59444621762897647322016-10-11T08:50:00.002-04:002016-10-11T08:51:17.273-04:00Jump Ranges to 7 ly, Boys!As of a few minutes ago, CCP Larkin <a href="https://forums.eveonline.com/default.aspx?g=posts&m=6667765" target="_blank">announced a pretty badly needed change to jump ranges</a> that will be hitting in the November Ascension expansion. With this change, carriers will have a maximum range of 7 ly (two more than currently) and supers will be able to travel to 6 ly. While that doesn't seem like a particularly big deal to non-capital pilots, try plugging a few routes into <a href="http://www.eve-icsc.com/jumptools/jumpplanner.php" target="_blank">jumpplanner</a> and you'll see how important it is. Quite often on long routes, you can end up with the response, "No route is possible" taking only cyno jumps.<br />
<br />
Within the post, CCP Larkin stated that the company's goals are to:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Reintroduce a natural path for capital combat to escalate.</li>
<li>Differentiate the power projection of Capitals and Sub-Capitals.</li>
<li>Allow alternative logistics and force projection paths into space that is currently very difficult to access.</li>
<li>Open up chokepoints and allow jump paths to be a little less predictable.</li>
</ul>
<br />
While this change will be almost universally praised by capital-capable pilots, will it achieve those goals, and are those goals even worthy?<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
I mentioned a few posts ago how <a href="http://targetcaller.blogspot.com/2016/10/wormholes-gates-and-risking-it-all.html" target="_blank">I was looking at a 17-jump route</a> between where I purchased my carrier and where I'd be using it. It was such a frustrating amount of cyno coordination that I was willing to wait for a suitable wormhole connection, no matter how long it took.<br />
<br />
As it turned out, the answer was four days, but that route involved a dangerous gate jump across regions (from low-to-null, no less) and two wormholes, any point of which I could have been interdicted. Yet, I was willing to risk all of that just to avoid the nightmare that is post-Phoebe capital navigation. Yes, it's that bad.<br />
<br />
But now, I'm tossed a live preserver, in the form of a 40% increase in jump range. I think it's safe to say that nearly everyone is going to be happy with this change because of the simple fact of range increases alone. But that's not really enough.<br />
<br />
One of the aspects that a lot of capital pilots really enjoyed about the old jump ranges was the variation between titan, supercarrier, and capital ranges. It made coordination a thing, and created some interesting diversity. Cunning use of staging systems pre-Phoebe (and, mind you, before capitals could take gates) meant that a smaller group could drop dreads on an enemy's staging system, but could be out of range of an overwhelming titan blob because of differences in jump range. The decision about whether you're bringing capitals or supers would affect your route, how many mids you'd need, and how fast you could go.<br />
<br />
Phoebe came and standardized all combat capital movement to 5 ly at max. That really took something out of capital gameplay that players have quietly missed. As it stands now, dreads are almost always the lesser option than any other capital. Titans put out more damage with the same siege restrictions, while carriers and supers can apply strong damage while still being able to warp off at will and handle subcaps. And, that's just one example.<br />
<br />
But now, dreads and carriers can be a more mobile attack platform again, and the task you're undertaking can affect what you decide to take. Perhaps you send the dreads, carriers, and FAXes in first while your supers and titans take a couple gates to get into range (though, leaving your supers and titans on their own can be risky for other reasons). But it does offer the option. Do you need something on-grid immediately, with reinforcements coming later? An agile opponent could split your supers from your capitals or force you to make some decisions by attacking in multiple places at once.<br />
<br />
One thing is certain, even excepting the halved range compared to pre-Phoebe, we aren't going back to the bad old days of capital blobs globe-spanning. After all, fatigue is still a very real thing, and shotgunning two 7-ly jumps will trigger upwards of 6 hrs of fatigue.<br />
<br />
This change, though, indicates that CCP was listening when we complained about the number of chokepoints in space. Some groups have definitely exploited these chokepoints (i.e. never take a capital through Airidia), and are bagging capital kills left and right as people are forced to use dangerous routes because they have no other choice.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Eve/comments/2isbfu/jump_freighter_ranges_5ly_vs_10ly/?st=iu5gxn9q&sh=913803e6" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLdA1h_HygmjeWQQ6XdevkwKs9Kzx-6_EiqDWwnVbyRISz2jwhMEg0iG00FNDpYJBLGGdZHowkJh-WW0tHM7EDm9HhVCgR10U1kQwrObUpH8QxMcfkIspxyPStHJXsFNqQHstIb3JD11KD/s400/436.png" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Eve/comments/2isbfu/jump_freighter_ranges_5ly_vs_10ly/?st=iu5gxn9q&sh=913803e6" target="_blank">Courtesy of Caprisunkraftfoods, and not the delicious drink</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Variation in route may become a thing again - someone with more free time than I have will need to run the map to see what a 7-ly range looks like compared to these maps. But we certainly stand to profit more than just by losing fewer cynosural generators.<br />
<br />
Supercap and capital logistics affect the size of a theater of war. Where they can go creates the amount of contested space that can exist within any conflict, since attacking sovereignty assets - practically speaking - requires capitals. The age of citadels requires the ability to counter-drop, and right now, a small capital jump range means there are any so many places capitals can drop; it's predictable, and this works against the "fight in many systems" approach CCP is hoping for.<br />
<br />
While 7 ly is a boost, I don't think it'll undo the good work Phoebe did in compartmentalizing space. The fatigue hit will make it unfeasible for non-local groups to drop an alliance's capital fleet, but it should add a little more risk to fielding capital assets. I don't think we'll see a reduction in the capital usage that spiked once every alliance didn't have to worry about PL carting across the map to drop on them anymore.<br />
<br />
Sure, some areas of space will be more affected than others. After all, different regions were added at different times and with different design philosophies (I'm looking at you, dronelands). All inter-regional jump ranges were determined before capitals could use gates. The map has a lot of idiosyncrasies that cause problems for various residents and defenders, and this jump range buff should help alleviate a lot of that.<br />
<br />
Logistics should be a lot easier. After all, there should be no situation in which "you can't get there from here", and I imagine CCP's jump range buff should address these scenarios. Getting 80 minutes of fatigue vs. 60 minutes isn't a big deal if you're just looking to do a one-time move across the map, since you get to go 40% further with each jump. In the long run, it probably saves you time. If you shotgun two jumps in a row before bed (during which your fatigue will dissipate), you're 14 ly closer to your destination, not 10. That's a big deal, and will reduce the number of days it takes to complete a long move.<br />
<br />
This is a good change, and returns some interesting possibilities to the game. As a casual capital pilot, I'm breathing a sigh of relief.Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-45272258453628289892016-10-07T09:57:00.001-04:002016-10-07T09:57:35.053-04:00Am I Starting to Like PvE?<div class="MsoNormal">
In my last post, I talked about <u><a href="http://targetcaller.blogspot.com/2016/10/wormholes-gates-and-risking-it-all.html">taking
a few moderate risks</a></u> to get a ratting carrier into the dronelands. My
goal wasn’t just to earn isk, though that is a nice side effect. Rather, I
wanted to become more comfortable with flying a carrier and comfortable with
the fighter controls. While I’ve been able to fly capitals for a few years now,
I really haven’t used them often in combat. Most of my experience with them
came in the form of POS repairing.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But now that I’m in system and settling down to actually use
the carrier, it’s quite profitable, in more ways than one. In some ways, it’s a
bit different than I expected.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s the prefect time to do this little experiment. NC. is
engaged in our slow milking of Tribute, so Talvorian is in KQK pretty much
every night. In between fleets, though, there really isn’t enough time to go
roaming, find action, and get back, so it’s the perfect time to do a little
carrier practice.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Over the past six days, I’ve ratted for perhaps an hour and
a half each day. For those of you interested in the isk, my latest tick just
put me over 1 billion after corp taxes. In my time, I’ve seen one faction spawn
and two drone carriers spawn. None dropped anything interesting. I wasn’t able
to take down the carrier spawns solo in my fit, though. For most of that time,
my damage was modified only by Fighters II and Gallente Carrier III, though I
did complete Fighters IV during the course of the week. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The ticks aren’t as good as many people experience, but
that’s okay. Once I get to T2 fighters, EFT tells me my dps will increase by
600 when shooting both lasers and rockets. That should help with the ticks.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The most valuable part of the experience isn’t the isk I’m
earning, though. I could do that just as well market trading or running cosmic
signatures in relative safety, and the drops are usually better. No, the real
value comes from getting a feel for the carrier.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
While my fit does have a single hyperspatial velocity
optimizer, the effect on its warp speed seems negligible. While I’m sure it
does help get me to fighting faster, it feels like it takes forever to cross a
system. I’ve been surprised at how quickly it aligns, though. When I land on a
site and drop drones, by the time I activate my Networked Sensor Array, lock
targets, and give the order to apply damage, I’m already at half speed.
Turning, though, is next to impossible. For one of the carrier spawns, a corpmate
and I landed on each other, bumped, and spent the next five minutes realigning.
But when it’s operating on its own from a dead stop, the align time is quite
acceptable.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At first, the fighter controls felt uncomfortable. When the
fighter panel is up – even if you detach it from the HUD, you aren’t able to
activate your ship modules with hotkeys, even if they’re mapped to F4-F9, those
not used by fighters. That’s awkward and frustrating. While I can understand
making the first three F keys control your fighters, it’d be nice to have full
control if you lay out your modules correctly.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The fighters themselves respond faster than ship modules do.
Typically for me (being in <st1:place w:st="on">Eastern USTZ</st1:place>),
there’s a delay at the end of a cycle as the server catches up with my
commands. That doesn’t seem to be the case with fighters; the moment that
little red circle around my fighter turrets completes the cycle, it’s ready to
fire again. I don’t know how CCP made that happen – and I suspect doing it for
fighters and doing it for modules are different animals – but I’m glad for it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m impressed at fighter tracking, and I understand the
dilemma CCP faces. Generally speaking, my fighters are applying full damage to
frigates flying under about half of a typical PvP fit’s AB speed. From testing
I’ve done on Sisi, it looks like most tacklers can survive several volleys from
fighters before dying. The key has to be speed. At the 500 m/s drone rats
travel, they take full damage; at the 1 km/s or greater player frigates travel
(under AB), they can mitigate some of that damage. For ratting, though, it
works beautifully, without problems.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In trying to manage my damage application, though, I agree
with the people calling for <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Eve/comments/55j67y/we_need_shortcuts_for_individual_fighter_squadrons/?st=itztior9&sh=4d10e788">individual
shortcuts</a> for fighter squadrons. Though, I’d probably simplify the proposed
suggestion a bit by allowing you to toggle control on or off for each fighter.
So, 1, 2, and 3 would highlight or deselect each fighter, while F1, F2, and F3
would still manage their individual weapon systems. It just seems easier to
have on/off toggles for each. I wouldn’t want to have to hit six buttons every
time I wanted to active an MWD and lasers, if I could hit 1, 2, and 3 one time,
then just hit F1 and F2 at each activation.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Fighter MWD is a bit awkward, as it’s very easy to overshoot
your target. In a PvP setting, I have to imagine that being locked into an MWD
for so long would be bothersome. I wonder if there’s a possibility to reduce
both the duration and recharge time by half or so. It seems like it’d be more
useful. Does that overpower, though? I wonder.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Boy, I love those rockets. There’s nothing more enjoyable
than doing a 10k alpha strike, while still being able to warp off afterwards
(sorry, dread siege pilots…). Oddly, I’ve found the lasers on Templars to be
more accurate than the rockets, which seems backwards to me. But, now that I
know that little tidbit, it’s a small matter to save the rockets for
battlecruisers or battleships (the latter for PvE) and use lasers for
everything else.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In a nutshell, I don’t feel a lot of anxiety while flying my
carrier. That surprised me. Maybe it’s the complete absence of other pilots
around our system or the fact that I’m reasonably confident that being aligned,
with an exit cyno ready, and having fighters in space means I’ll be able to
shred most tackle that lands on me. I don’t feel exposed and hunted the same
way I did in capitals before the split. Does everyone else feel that way?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At first, I thought it was a result of comfort, but I’ve
only been flying the ship for a short while. Typically, I only start to feel
comfortable after several weeks. Maybe it’s a result of me routinely flying around
in 600-mil PvP ships for fleets, a 1.1 bil ratting Tengu, or carrying around 3
billion worth of merchandise to stock a market with. Is my attitude just skewed
by a fattening wallet?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Regardless, I’m feeling very comfortable now, and am
starting to understand the capabilities of the ship. I’m very pleased on that
account!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But, no, I’m not starting to like PvE. I’m finding anomaly
running to be a horrible grind, broken only by testing out the ship, watching
for neutrals, and managing incoming damage to my fighters. So far, I’ve only
lost two fighters, and both were the result of me tabbing to another program.
It’s actually quite easy to avoid fighter damage, at least for PvE. With
dedicated dps being applied by an actual human, I imagine they’d be quite a bit
squishier.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I am, though, liking what PvE can tell me about the ship.</div>
Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-1115233715894569942016-10-03T11:30:00.002-04:002016-10-03T11:31:00.360-04:00Wormholes, Gates, and Risking It AllRecently, I shared some musings about the constant <a href="http://targetcaller.blogspot.com/2016/09/when-risk-is-too-much.html" target="_blank">risk/reward decisions</a> occurring inside the heads of every Eve player every day. While sometimes it's not worth the risk to try to go through the Nourvukaiken/Tama gate in a hauler, other times, you just need to take that risk.<br />
<br />
A week ago, I moved a character into a dedicated ratting corp, with the intention of doing a little carrier ratting to generate isk. My reasons for this weren't purely economic, though. I tend to be very nervous about cosmic anomalies; the fact that anyone can warp to them makes me a bit skittish. While carriers are capable of holding their own against subcaps now - something not true in the days between carriers being able to field light drones and the new squadron fighter mechanics - I've grown up on stories and experiences killing ratting carriers, and that kind of lesson doesn't quickly go away.<br />
<br />
One of my corpmates, Alice Karjovic, won me over by suggesting that carrier ratting is quite different than it used to be. No longer is it the afk activity it used to be. In fact, he was pretty adamant that it's a good way to become familiar with the new fighter control mechanics, and actually serves as good training for carrier PvP. I'm very inexperienced with using capitals, so it sounded like a good thing to try to gain a little practice in a safer (yet still exposed) way.<br />
<br />
But, first, I needed to get a carrier in the ratting system.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
Fresh-eyed and ready to dive, in, I checked contracts and found a nice Thanatos hull with the right rigs and plenty of fuel for 1.3 billion in Ihakana. Over the next couple days, I bought the mods I'd need, had Red Frog ship them to the high-sec system next door, and ferried them over to Ihakana in my Viator.<br />
<br />
Now fully fit, I sat down to plan my route. It shouldn't be a surprise that my destination was the dronelands... a long trek consisting of about 17 jumps from Ihakana, if relying entirely on cynos. I had no intention of relying entirely on cynos, though. Using a single cyno character, that round would involve me moving a character through about 90 systems, contracting my ship so I can hide it and get a newbie frigate to light the cyno, buying fuel, replacing lost cyno generators, etc. etc. It's a lot of hassle, and I wasn't eager to spend all my time for five or six days moving a ratting character.<br />
<br />
I could afford to be patient, so I waited. Instead, if moved my ratting character to my target system in a Buzzard, and decided to scan down a wormhole that would help me bring the carrier in a lot sooner. I might get lucky and find a good connection on day 1, or I might have to wait for a month for it to work out, but at least I wouldn't be grinding through jumps and logistics for an entire week's playtime.<br />
<br />
This wasn't my first time moving capitals through wormholes. A couple years ago when the CFC invaded Delve the second time, I decided to take advantage of a favorable wormhole connecting Tenal to Delve, with each side being a single cyno away from our home staging and deployment staging systems.<br />
<br />
I admit, you feel powerful when you take a capital through a fresh hole and see it immediately go critical. But with the comfort comes risk. You can't go station-to-station through wormholes. If you jump through that hole, it involves risk on both sides. Capitals warp very slow... slowly enough that someone could theoretically see you begin to align, realize it's in no discernible direction, and probe down the hole before you land. And with jump fatigue, people are more interested in probing down wormholes now than ever. The risk is real.<br />
<br />
Five days into my scanning campaign, I found a hole a few systems out from my destination leading to lowsec. More than once over the past week, I found those lowsec holes, though, only to see that they led to a system five or six cyno jumps out from Ihakana. This time was no exception: a system in Domain. But, that system was completely empty, and a couple additional signatures. Rather than giving up and returning to null, I scanned down another lowsec connection. This time, it led to The Citadel. Now we're talking.<br />
<br />
A quick visit to jumpplanner left me depressed. Taking only gates, it was a six-cyno route. But, some of the system names were familiar. The last jump went from P3EN to Horkkisen... I knew P3EN. Checking dotlan, I saw it was next door to Obe, a system withing carrier range of Ihakana.<br />
<br />
I started to sit up in my seat a little more. Two wormholes and two cynos to bring my carrier in? That was more like it. But, the route wasn't without risks. I'd not only have to take the Obe/P3EN gate, but I'd have to warp to a wormhole twice. That was a lot of traveling around in space.<br />
<br />
Would I get another chance anytime soon, though? The thought of only having to burn two cynos was tantalizing. For a few minutes, I sat there, debating with myself. If I was unlucky, I'd be making a 1.2 billion isk mistake after factoring in insurance. With my cyno character, I checked the othe rside of the Obe/P3EN gate. One in local, no bubbles on the gate. But Obe itself had 9 pilots, though none on dscan.<br />
<br />
<i>Fortune favors the bold</i>. I decided to go for it.<br />
<br />
Before I changed my mind, I moved my cyno character to Obe, did the contracting trick to hide my travel Astero, and positioned a newbie ship. With my ratting character, I burned back through the two wormholes, docked up, and clonejumped to my carrier. The first cyno was an easy one, lighting it on a nice, roomy station and docking up.<br />
<br />
Once my cyno self-destructed, I got back in my Astero, bought a new cyno generator and liquid ozone, and made my way to Horkkisen, an unfortunately named system I've never been to before. It was a lone low-sec system on the other side of a high-sec island, and I never saw a soul in local. I didn't anticipate problems on that side.<br />
<br />
But first, i needed to get into P3EN safely. Once I positioned my cyno character, I undocked my carrier and started to align to P3EN, furiously hitting dscan for probes or ships. So far, so good. The gate was in front of the undock, so I didn't need to worry about bumping off the station while aligning. Ever so slowly, my ship entered warp. I was committed now.<br />
<br />
As I was 12 au away, I saw probes and an Astero pop up on dscan. My eyes widened with alarm instantly, but they were only core probes. I kept dscanning, expecting to see the core probes be replaced by combat probes, but nothing changed as I landed on the gate. Without waiting for that to change, I jumped.<br />
<br />
Mercury, god of travelers, was smiling on me. The system was unchanged, just a single pilot in local and no bubbles. Without waiting around, I lit my cyno, double-clicked in space to break my gate cloak, and jumped to safety.<br />
<br />
Horkissen had 9 pilots in local, but the wormhole was within dscan range. As soon as my cyno self-destructed, I undocked and started aligning off to the hole. I had been lucky once already. But my scouting of the system seemed accurate. Everyone was either docked up or too busy with their own business to bother me. I jumped through the hole to an empty system in Domain, and then through the second hole to nullsec. No within the same constellation as my destination, one of my corpmates scouted me the last few gates, and I found myself home.<br />
<br />
In the end, I saved myself fifteen cynos by taking the risk. Was it worth it? Was it the right decision? I can tell you that using that route turned a simple, safe move op into a nerve-wracking hour of travel. An hour of anxiety is a lot better than the hassle of a whole week's effort of moving a capital across the map. In the end, no one tried to catch me, but I did take a few big risks and made a few assumptions, and those risks elevated the experience from a chore to a gamble. Gambles are infinitely more enjoyable.<br />
<br />
In the end, it isn't the reality of our situation that we really respond to, but all the possibilities of the unknown hitting us all at once. That's why I play this game; the what-ifs colliding with probability, intersecting with the pursuit of enjoyment. What a rush!Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-87388811777374526642016-10-01T11:00:00.000-04:002016-10-01T13:17:00.634-04:00Propaganda: Basic ReactionsBalancing equations has never been easier, thanks to the Reddit comments of our friends in Circle of Two!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja1aHIlIKOhRBA_OBZwiMfYH7_ORQimtEczmzWIikGM2CoHd4t7mAC8gE5nnkugEeFM-68GEgz8E42s2UBREGFXjCNfHnmAc5qeyP2gBB1WUzBtunvXMLtWBlDczvk-un4_1V5VVkdHaMB/s1600/Chemistry+101.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja1aHIlIKOhRBA_OBZwiMfYH7_ORQimtEczmzWIikGM2CoHd4t7mAC8gE5nnkugEeFM-68GEgz8E42s2UBREGFXjCNfHnmAc5qeyP2gBB1WUzBtunvXMLtWBlDczvk-un4_1V5VVkdHaMB/s400/Chemistry+101.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">When balancing equations, don't skimp on the salt.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Enjoy the war, and study for Chem 101 at the same time.Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-85802594185030889352016-09-29T15:33:00.000-04:002016-09-29T15:33:06.918-04:00Random EncountersEve is a social game, at its core. At the most basic level, having more people allows you to accomplish bigger goals, like taking down larger targets or completing more difficult missions or sites. Some aspects of the game simply aren't possible without multiple players, like supercap production, incursions, or carrier ratting. Others aren't viable - moon mining and PI are far easier and more profitable with multiple players.<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
When it comes to PvP, more players always makes it easier. Sometimes, that's not a good thing, like when you're specifically trying to fight outnumbered to stretch yourself. But in some situations and against some enemies, it's prudent and useful.</div>
<div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
While most people offer the advice to join a player-run corporation so you have a group of people to talk to in game, that advice is usually offered more to ensure long-term engagement than to occupy each play session. The simple fact is, joining a corporation isn't enough. Nor is it enough to have a certain corp size.</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The real factor you should be looking for is how many mains your corp has in the same place.</div>
<div>
<a name='more'></a><br /></div>
<div>
Tamerlane purportedly said, "It is better to be on hand with ten men than absent with ten thousand," and Napoleon preferred to occupy the central position in a battle so he could deploy his full force to any particular part of the battle. Earlier this year, the CFC learned that it wasn't how many characters you had in your coalition, but the effective number you could bring to a battle that mattered.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Community is created by people not only talking together, but doing things in the same area. This is one of the reasons many people will warn new players against joining "jack-of-all-trades" corps that do "industry, mining, PvE, PvP, and incursions". At best, it's a lie. At worst, you aren't joining a corporation, but rather five separate corporations under the same ticker. And that sort of divided attention can really dampen your experience with that corporation. The key to any successful corporation is to have a single staging system, and focusing all corp operations out of that system.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
An alliance operates the same way. Pick a single staging system and set the expectation that corporations need to compel their members to base out of that system. Sure, that definitely benefits you when it comes to efficiency. You can mine more, boost indexes, or run more complicated and expensive fleet comps if you can draw more people for your fleets, but that's not the only benefit.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Eve is a game about emergent gameplay, right? Well, emergent gameplay doesn't happen unless you have people to interact with. Allow me to give you an example.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Since about three months after I left the CFC, I would roam through the north <a href="http://targetcaller.blogspot.com/2016/05/hunting-ratters-guide.html" target="_blank">hunting ratters</a>. During most of that time, I rarely came across a fight in progress and never saw another corpmate. I collected more than a few killmarks, of course, but roams tended to be hit or miss, depending on whether I caught anyone. Sometimes for a couple unlucky days, I'd spend my time warping from system to system with no real enjoyment to show for it.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
You may have heard about NC.'s deployment to attack Tribute, based on the dozens of propaganda posts on Reddit. If you haven't checked them out yet, do so now. This one, in particular, was highly creative to <u><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Eve/comments/54lzsi/in_peace_sons_bury_their_fathers_in_war_fathers/?st=itopgbm1&sh=45235460" target="_blank">commemorate a Pandemic Horde welp</a></u>. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
But the whole alliance moved, and is now staging out of the same system, close to lots of fertile hunting grounds for whalers. In between large fleets, it's absolutely viable for solo roamers to travel out from KQK and catch a few folks.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
For those of you who haven't gone through a hunting ground in both wartime and peacetime, the nature of the space changes dramatically. In peace, carebears fill systems as far as the eye can see, and often your challenge isn't in finding enough targets. The difficulty rests in discerning their location and catching them before they warp off. Often, you'll find a target, only to realize you don't have the dps to break him by yourself - for instance, a Rattlesnake or Thanatos. That's a good problem to have, though; you have people to shoot, if you can demonstrate enough skill to catch them.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
On occasion, someone forms a gang to fight back, and you either have to try to split them up or run from them. But more often than not, this doesn't happen, although it is more common now than when the CFC owned the space.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
During wartime, the problems are quite a bit different. Most of the systems between you and the enemy have eyes watching them, so you're quickly reported in intel. Very few ratters are bold enough to rat in between two staging systems, so targets are slim, and as you move closer to enemy staging systems, you find response gangs become more frequent and larger.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Nonetheless, there are other targets. Transports supplying the war and people traveling to and from ratting systems are plentiful. Some pilots will bring in their own doctrine ships to avoid the alliance contract markups, and those tend to be easy targets for a solo PvPer. Most doctrine fits, for instance, don't include scrams or warp disruptors, and tend to be weak against either kiting or brawling. The trick here is in being able to slip behind enemy lines to attack them.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Yet, when you're truly on your own, there's only so much you can accomplish. Response gangs won't be gangs, but rather full fleets of a dozen or so pilots (usually with jams and heavy interdictors).</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Yesterday, though, I had a different experience. I decided to roam through the warzone in my Stratios to catch anyone I might be able to find. I didn't succeed, but I did land on anoms as a couple pilots warped away to safety. Missed it by that much.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
A few jumps in, I see an alliance mate in local... and promptly ignore him. The habits of solo roaming run deep, and I assumed he was just a scout for our FCs. You can imagine, then, how surprised I was to see his Stratios engaging a Svipul he had split up from a couple additional hostiles. I was cloaked and 100 km away, and he seemed to have things well in hand, so I kept cloaked and began moving towards him.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Help arrived, and just as I was about to decloak, he warped off to safety. Naturally, we convo'd and fleeted each other up, and started going after the targets together. Fits were shared, situations were updated, and we tried to bait them out into another fight. At the time, the CO2 pilots didn't know what ship I was in, so we figured there was a chance they'd assume I was his eyes and not really a threat. And, indeed, CO2 and my alliance mate sparred a bit.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Consider what might have happened. Easily, CO2 might have decided to engage him, and another Stratios would have doubled our neuting and dps capability. Working together, we could have taken down more targets than either of us could alone, even by combining our totals. We might have been able to take down a rattlesnake in Tribute, for instance, but could only take down an Ishtar each if he was in Venal and I was in Fade. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
In the end, I didn't score any kills (though he killed a couple small ships before my time). Nonetheless, the mere presence of that pilot from my alliance doing the same thing I was doing in the same area was enough for me to really enjoy myself. I had more fun, even though I didn't get any kills, than I would have on my own. Meeting up and cooperating with my alliance mate turned that solo activity into an engaging, interactive one. That fact alone justified the time spent.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
That wouldn't have happened without us both basing ourselves out of the same system. That simple operational expectation placed on us by our alliance and corp leadership created that piece of emergent content. The really interesting part? Leadership enabled that while they were logged off, blissfully unaware and living their lives. They didn't need to find an FC, scouts, and a titan bridge. They didn't need to call a CTA or employ our Jabber services. They didn't need to scream for "more dudes" in local. They just had to get us in the same system and we handled the rest.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
That's the real value of a player corporation. It isn't just corp chat, but rather the practical effects of having all your members in one location, doing things in close proximity, that generates culture, camaraderie, content, and cohesion. Sometimes, it's not the scripted, scheduled events that a corp provides that provides the value of a corp. Rather, that fill-in content can sometimes be more thrilling and satisfy us longer.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
That's something to keep in mind if you're starting a corp, trying to resuscitate one, or looking to join one. It's not numbers or skill level that really matters, but rather the degree to which the group works together in a single location. Yes, it tends to limit a corporation to a single or a couple areas of focus, but in the end, this is a good thing. The corp that tries to do everything ends up doing nothing very well.</div>
Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-70974261077166645702016-09-25T23:02:00.001-04:002016-09-25T23:03:26.556-04:00A Beautiful Thing to Behold<div class="MsoNormal">
I remember the first time I ever saw a Titan. It was very
early in my career as a Roving Guns pilot in Razor. We landed on it in our
Drakes (yeah, back then!) and got ready to bridge into a fight.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This was back in the times when bumping titans was a serious
problem and FCs would rage for years about knocking it out of the POS. It was
in the time of the black screen of death that sometimes happened when you
loaded grid. That problem was always made worse by multiple pilots jumping at
once, making a titan bridge a serious concern for those of us with lower-end
PCs. After any jump, you might have found yourself dropped, only to log back in
all alone.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Only a few weeks after seeing that first titan, I
participated in my first two Titan kills, an <a href="https://zkillboard.com/kill/22952401/">Avatar</a> and an <a href="https://zkillboard.com/kill/22952521/">Erebus</a> in Venal, of all
places. This was back when Titans weren’t used that often. They were utterly
helpless when caught by themselves, and rarely traveled, or were even used that
much in combat.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In the interim, though, I’ve participated in a wide number
of move ops, but until Citadels, supers and titans had to be parked in POSes,
and were often moved on their own, separate from capital and subcap fleets.
While I might pass an occasional titan in transit, it was infrequent.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That all changed today, and I've got the evidence to prove it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
For a lot of alliances, even having a single titan can be a
big deal. Maybe you have access to a handful.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
NC. redeployed today, and in so doing, transported its
entire EUTZ and part of its USTZ fleet with it. It was a <a href="https://dscan.me/VvMD04">little larger than a handful</a>.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What exactly does that size of a fleet look like? A lot like
this.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW1jFj2lHeieETwTxf_jn4GzvXF9o5vHQc0rhLMKzA9qZIl-7BeZIlQFPogiZ1akE_RJ2OUIxkpTUzBBY-hfkxFshQytoVODraIP8G_NNWD5tcOSCt0SIQd_pVlMw9Kuz5SPxcxVc2NDTh/s1600/431+%25231.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW1jFj2lHeieETwTxf_jn4GzvXF9o5vHQc0rhLMKzA9qZIl-7BeZIlQFPogiZ1akE_RJ2OUIxkpTUzBBY-hfkxFshQytoVODraIP8G_NNWD5tcOSCt0SIQd_pVlMw9Kuz5SPxcxVc2NDTh/s400/431+%25231.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVgfxrlRw5I8WPHopM-I5Qnhja8FNmhhwS369sZs15LkBFj9cqnemewhWYO6zNf6LCUhcwyWaay-I672jZReUqeCWr_cCwqO4TzVRvv8WYlN5g8nzcg_gTGXqxUFQmletrmvPXmTRiRHTD/s1600/431+%25232.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVgfxrlRw5I8WPHopM-I5Qnhja8FNmhhwS369sZs15LkBFj9cqnemewhWYO6zNf6LCUhcwyWaay-I672jZReUqeCWr_cCwqO4TzVRvv8WYlN5g8nzcg_gTGXqxUFQmletrmvPXmTRiRHTD/s400/431+%25232.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8lwCKPsQlN57k0Yn2dc-_kkFw5MSMVOz-N8U2Iogv398BKeKi4fHD1mH_k0gO0qfV6KL16cmv3bDO2mdY2_XdIu5NBgyso5zlv-qYcdn6SgKKCxPYcYVM9f1B_dz-5Di8pLfnUPi62DPP/s1600/431+%25233.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8lwCKPsQlN57k0Yn2dc-_kkFw5MSMVOz-N8U2Iogv398BKeKi4fHD1mH_k0gO0qfV6KL16cmv3bDO2mdY2_XdIu5NBgyso5zlv-qYcdn6SgKKCxPYcYVM9f1B_dz-5Di8pLfnUPi62DPP/s400/431+%25233.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There’s something magical about seeing a fleet of that size
taking a gate and aligning out. I doubt the Amarr navy – the largest in empire
space – could match it in a slug-fest.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There are definite advantages to being in an alliance like
this.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Awesome screenshots.Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-40656268124173711242016-09-22T15:59:00.000-04:002016-09-22T15:59:08.401-04:00Don't Ever Try to Sell CapitalsTwo days ago, I faced the unenviable discovery that my alliance had changed its priorities, and no one had bothered to tell me. I found myself about two months behind the meta, holding onto ships I didn't need any longer.<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Now, this happens all the time, of course. Doctrines change and ships become obsolete. This time, though, the problem was the kind of ships. We weren't talking about a few frigates here.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
This is how things typically go when you decommission a doctrine. You somehow get your ship to Jita (typically contracting or hauling it), you repackage it, and sell the components on the market for either whatever you can get, or you set up sell orders to move it at the optimal price, if you don't need the isk quickly. Then, you pick up the new ship and make your way (or ship it) back to your staging. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Of course, there are complications. Maybe you're deployed in deep null with camps along the way, and you need to use a courier service and alliance contracts. Or maybe you want to repurpose the ship and just need a few modules to retrofit it. I've certainly done that more than once. In the latter case, that involves inventorying what you have and what you need. There's nothing more annoying that going through the effort of hauling modules in only to realize you forgot to bring the T2 rig that makes the whole fit work.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
But with capitals? It's a giant headache.</div>
<div>
<a name='more'></a><br /></div>
<div>
I had two Naglfars the alliance really doesn't use anymore. Because I tend to fly very light, I decided to just sell them. Even if we would use them in the future, the fit will likely completely change, and I'd just be delaying the hassle. So, I had to sell them.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I now have two characters able to light cynos with un-expanded noob ships, so off they went, one to Aunenen and one to Okagaiken. I decided to split up my contracts so I could maximize the chances of finding a nearby buyer. While they're only a few jumps apart, they're both in different regions and two capital jumps apart. With caps, saving even one jump can mean the difference between a sale and an unfulfilled contract.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
But before I could jump them out, I had to keep an eye on what I was replacing them with. FAXes are all the rage now (and boy, I do mean rage!), so I picked up an Apostle that would look lovely with one of the new Purity of the Throne skins I looted. Task finished, right?</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Oh, my dear friend, no, no, no! First, there was the poring through what modules I already had so I understood what I needed to buy to complete the fit. Then there was the hauling the old stuff out; cap modules are big. But that was the easy part.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
You see, when you fit up a capital, you aren't just fitting up the ship. That's easy to do with multibuy. You also have to bring along refit modules to address any of a number of scenarios you might face - spare modules for a couple different scenario-specific fits, different rigs, mobile depots, needed implants - none of which the Eve client populates in an imported fit. So, it's a lot of manual work of buying each module in turn, work made more difficult by the need to cross-reference against what I already had from the Nalgfar fits.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Suffice to say, I was feeling the pain from the fit import tool not populating cargo modules. It seems like a stupid oversight that, if fixed, would make the life of every capital pilot a lot easier. All in all, moving, stripping, outfitting, and contracting those two dreads took about six hours to fully complete.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
When I sat back and thought about it, I really started to question the necessity of all that. Under normal circumstances, that would be three days of play time for me. Is that really how I want to be spending my time? Now, I can understand wanting to structure things in such a way that losing a ship requires some time to replace either before or after the fact, but this seems a bit ridiculous.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Six hours to allow me to get back to square one. Really?</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
We tend to do a lot of things in the game that are an absolute chore, but I start to wonder whether all of it is really necessary. Are we conditioned to view Eve as a grind of tedium so much that we fail to recognize the unnecessary annoyances that they are?</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I'm not sure there's a way to overcome the tedium and exhaustion that comes from something like swapping capitals without breaking the balance of factors that goes into capital combat. For instance, when capitals were easier to move for sale, they were also easier to move for combat, leading to a small, intimate universe... where every supercap fleet was on your doorstop. What's the alternative? NPC capital transport through low-sec routes that takes one RL day for every two capital jumps?</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Regardless, that was three days' worth of playtime spend on administrative garbage that isn't engaging or interesting. Nor was it risky, offering the chance of content for other players. I jumped station to station twice, docked up immediately, and moved my modules through cloaky hauling.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Is the 1% chance of content for a hypothetical passerby worth six hours? Put another way, is a single 500-mil kill worth 600 hours of grinding boredom?</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I don't think so. If our standards are that low, everyone would mine.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Regardless, I'm left taking a lot of steps and doing a lot of boring "things" just to get to square-one with participating in something engaging. There has to be a better way to structure it.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Doesn't there?</div>
Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-9331728374341694472016-09-20T22:53:00.003-04:002016-09-20T22:54:45.887-04:00Gotta Catch 'em All<div class="MsoNormal">
The Purity of the Throne event has been run for the past
seven days. While I missed the first five due to vacation, over the past
couple, I’ve been running a few of the sites.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUV7tVm_9EFRHhZGzqHunRQLR_dplohQi9uo4Q2BGBE8XSZBv06aTyGyN2NXrPpTKbh1K3mnHpR353fr8HfPtBlXkbf19ZL5wYDWWi8bGA41uW6xPDE2CpJyKRGsrOwJoGeOTwAWTM77QW/s1600/429+Skins.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUV7tVm_9EFRHhZGzqHunRQLR_dplohQi9uo4Q2BGBE8XSZBv06aTyGyN2NXrPpTKbh1K3mnHpR353fr8HfPtBlXkbf19ZL5wYDWWi8bGA41uW6xPDE2CpJyKRGsrOwJoGeOTwAWTM77QW/s320/429+Skins.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Well, more than a few.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m not really a collector of novelty items. Sure, I have a
bionic arm on Talvorian, and I injected any freebie skins we received over
time. But other than that, I’ve bought exactly one skin, the Police Pursuit
Comet Skin. And that one was purchased only because it’s pretty awesome to pull
people over in lowsec (ie. kill them) while flying around in a ship painted
like a police cruiser.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In fact, generally speaking, I’m offended by CCP’s strategy
regarding skins. In my mind, they’re far too expensive for what you receive. I
think it’d make more sense (in-game reason) and demonstrate much better
customer respect (out-of-game reason) for a skin to be equally applicable to
every ship that shares the same hull profile (so, a skin could be useable on
Merlins, Hawks, Harpies, and Worms, for instance). I can’t really think of a
reason beyond the desire to squeeze every cent out of players for having it the
way it is.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Which, of course, is totally viable. I just don’t think it’s
good customer service.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Regardless, it’s a moot point, since I’m not really the
demographic for skins; I’ll never buy them because they’re far too expensive
for me to adopt them regularly. In fact, I rarely even remember to put them on
the ships I own them for. I’m just not built that way.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Nonetheless, I’m finding myself intrigued by the Purity of
the Throne event. Really, the rewards are more akin to the Operation Frostline
rewards – meager and without much inherent value – unlike the Blood Harvest
event.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yet, I’m consumed by this desire for nearly a whole set of
Purity skins. As far as I can tell, it’s simply the fact that the white skins
look awesome on Amarr ships. With all the other skins I’ve seen (again, with
the exception of the Police Pursuit Comet), they’ve really just been variations
of color combinations.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But these Purity skins are striking, bold, different. I’m
finding myself not only fixated on getting the ones for ships I regularly fly,
but even for ships I’ll never sit in. A <st1:place w:st="on">Providence</st1:place>?
Really? Gotta have it! I may even inject the Aeon and Avatar skins, even though
I’ll never fly them with Talvorian.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
My first reaction was that Purity was a great event to get
people interested in skins. But that quickly faded. After all, skins have been
released for some time now. If an event like this is required to focus interest
on skins, are they really that successful? I can’t imagine players are adopting
them at a satisfactory rate if CCP is going to this effort to highlight them so
much. Though, I suppose it’s always possible that they’re so successful that CCP
is leading with their strength. I might just be the odd player out in regards
to skin fever.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But is Purity really going to be the gateway event that
draws new players into a skin addiction? I’m not sure.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After all, the players who will never touch skins aren’t
going to be swayed, and those who are already addicts are going to continue as
they were too. Isn’t it the players in the middle who are meant to be
influenced by skin-based rewards? The players who might find some of them cool,
but are hesitant to purchase because of the cost?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The players like me?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On that account, I’m not sure how often I’d be willing to do
this kind of grind. While I find it interesting once, I’m not so sure I’d be
keen on doing it again. Maybe if CCP released “Minmatar Deception” skins that
were solid-gold as an Amarr-ship disguise, or a “Caldari Rave” version with
flashing strobe lights and neon colors, I might be inclined to do so.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then again, Purity of the Throne did get me to care about
and actively pursue skins, and CCP should be praised for that. That’s a
marketing win. The white skins are just so cool, man.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
But, maybe I’m being influenced by the sheer fun of
ninja-looting skins in high-sec, including my Apostle skin. If you haven’t done
that yet, please try it. It really is the most fun I’ve had in high-sec in
about half a decade!Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-369079204519231032016-09-14T15:02:00.003-04:002016-09-14T15:03:17.967-04:00What I'm Missing Most...Over the past few days, the fam has been on vacation, and my access to anything Eve-related has been limited to the occasional read of Reddit and the odd update of Evanova. Beyond disappointment that my market orders have obviously been bettered (based on a wallet that hasn't been steadily increasing), I really haven't missed Eve that much.<br />
<br />
I mean, sure, it's therapeutic to play at the end of the day, and that's not going to change. But, I've been by the beach, getting lots of good sleep, and not worrying about work in the slightest for the past three days. I don't really need pew therapy, do I? It's not really much of a surprise that I'm not missing playing.<br />
<br />
But, amid the absence, it occurred to me that I really am missing parts of the game. I feel like I'm missing the story. Between Catiz's coronation coming, the Purity of the Throne events, and the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgOi6vDSct4" target="_blank">new Scope video</a>, I'm itching to get back and participate in some of the new lore developments.<br />
<br />
When I had that thought, I stopped cold. It was immediately followed by another. The things that draw me to Eve are a lot more complex than I (and many people I've talked to) may first believe.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
In game, I rat and trade to earn isk. That occupies a lot of my time. But the truly enjoyable activities, for me, at least, are PvP-focused: fleets, solo roams, and corp small-gang fun roams on Friday nights. Yet, that's not what I'm missing. I can do without the "bricks", if you will. What really gets me antsy to return is all the "mortar" that fills in the spaces between those bricks.<br />
<br />
I can't think of another game I've played in which the GMs provide an in-universe explanation to every mechanic change and development that comes out of their programmers. CONCORD ordering the reclassification of the Hurricane and Drake into Navy Issue versions, for instance, shows a dedication to the lore that allows role-players to find a home alongside metagamers and point-and-shoot players. It creates immersion even for players who don't role-play. It creates narrative that runs parallel to the narratives players create.<br />
<br />
I hadn't really considered the consequences of that part of the game weaving through the rest. Story really matters to me, and CCP has done a good job of remaining dedicated to story even as they handle basic mechanic changes, in addition to providing some in-universe explanation to special events like the Crimson Harvest and Purity of the Throne.<br />
<br />
While I admit the Purity skins look awesome, if they're available for cheap on the market, I'll likely never run a site and simply buy them instead. But I'm feeling as if I'm missing something by sitting on the sidelines. Whether I kill rats or not, my experience is improved by the inclusion of these events and the lore-explanations of them within the game.<br />
<br />
The simple existence of a thing in Eve provides me with satisfaction, regardless of whether I even interact with it. That's an intriguing thought, and extends beyond something like my <a href="http://targetcaller.blogspot.com/2016/08/colonizing-30-minute-session.html" target="_blank">new appreciation for PvE development</a>. I don't think Purity of the Throne events are involved in that PvP lifecycle at all, but they add color to the universe that adds additional importance to everything we do in game.<br />
<br />
But, I'm feeling that tug to participate, not as much for the experience of accomplishing the tasks, but for the enjoyment of being a part of the narrative.Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-79185246747538096012016-09-11T08:29:00.000-04:002016-09-11T08:29:00.604-04:00A New Kind of Incentive<div class="MsoNormal">
In case you're not watching Reddit or the Eve announcements
page closely, yesterday CCP announced a series of rewards they’ll be giving to
subscribers who remain subscribed between now and the November expansion.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For those who do remain subscribed for this interval (a mere
2-3 months), they’ll receive a Gnosis (hope no one was investing in them…) and
a shuttle, and one of the new Society of Conscious Thought destroyers (a guess,
based on the available information)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The nature of this giveaway is not random. It’s a deliberate
connection to Clone States and what CCP hopes will be an influx of new players
through this program.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After all, both the Gnosis and the new destroyer
(potentially <a href="https://imgur.com/a/feq48#i4vIZq4">named the Sunesis</a>,
which fits with the naming scheme started by the Gnosis) will be able to be
flown by alpha clones.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now, a lot of folks will no doubt comment about how this
giveaway is really no different than the Christmas giveaways that CCP used to
do. I don’t count anything past the Geckos, since novelty stuff doesn’t really
compare. However, there is one key difference between this November gift and
the Christmas items.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s being announced two months in advance, and it requires
two months’ worth of subscription to earn it. While that doesn’t seem that big
of a deal, It makes all the difference. Whereas the Christmas giveaways were an
extra that they didn’t talk about beforehand, and which only required players
to be subscribed at that moment, this giveaway changes the game significantly.
It’s being used as a marketing tactic to maintain subscribers.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And that brings it into a wholly different class of
incentive. You could call it a bribe, intended to influence player behavior
proactively, rather than a thank-you gift to show appreciation of retrospective
behavior.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now, that in and of itself isn’t a bad thing. After all, CCP
is only asking that you be a part of the game to receive incentives within the
game. That seems like a reasonable request.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But when you consider it from a different angle, it’s quite
concerning: a subscription is no longer sufficient to earn something everyone
else is eligible for. Now, you need to pay two subscriptions to receive in-game
assets. After all, that’s what these ships are: assets, which can result in isk
if you sell them. It’s a kick-back in a way, probably worth about 100 mil when
all is said and done.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But it’s not good enough to just be a player for a month.
You have to pay for several months in a row. If you start playing again now?
Too bad, it’s not good enough. Now that I’ve considered that perspective, it
has me worried. When paying your subscription isn’t enough to allow you to
participate in a reward being released in a given month… well, that seems to add
credence to those who worry about Eve increasingly shifting to pay-to-win.
We’re not there yet, but this does strike me as a glaring signpost.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Likewise, think back to the nature of those giveaways. The
Gnosis only requires Spaceship Command I to fly it, and I suspect the SoCT
destroyer will also have the same requirement. That means alpha clones will be
able to fly them.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Gnosis giveaway, in particular, is telling. CCP just
released the skill limits for alpha clones, and already they’re developing ways
to work around it. Now, the market will be flooded with battlecruisers alpha
clones can fly, lowering the price of them considerably. And when faced with
having to scrounge isk for a cruiser or being able to fly the best ship in the
game for an alpha, which do you think they’ll do? Surely, they’ll want one. And
without a subscription to pay in order to fly it, why not buy a PLEX to sell
for the isk to buy a few of them?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Make no mistake. This movie s directly intended to encourage
alphas to participate in microtransactions to gain advantages in the game. It’s
not pay to win, but it’s clearly a step in that direction, at least as far as
alpha clones are concerned.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This incentive is certainly giving me the icky feelies, not
for what advantages it conveys now, but for the silhouette of a shape in the
distance. And that shape isn’t comforting.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Side note: I’ll
be out on a much-needed vacation for the next week, so I’m not sure if I’ll be
posting much. I hope everyone enjoys whatever madness is going to happen with
the Amarr schism that appears to be launching on Tuesday (resulting in the <a href="http://i.imgur.com/MkE284E.jpg">new white skins</a> I desperately want
for my Amarr ships. Have fun, everyone!<o:p></o:p></i></div>
Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4159840807393856856.post-45078654454374423732016-09-08T09:38:00.002-04:002016-09-08T09:38:37.700-04:00When the Risk is Too MuchEve is a game about risk, of course. Every time you undock, you risk the destruction of your ship. For that reason, any good mentor will suggest that you shouldn't get too attached to your ships. Save your fits so you can recreate them when they die. Don't covet them. View them as the tools they are, not good friends.<br />
<br />
And, try not to think about <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwPVOQWmp4QSnXQTSzkPyPdh4-7P0PH00k2KoVbARnMdkHdXNAlwOJ8ldoeA925P7A3BnOSdEFvSaEof2vPc_qe6leUxkPfUgW5mcVesL6Z4tWgm2qqTPi64oE-ASxBskN-duMItoSHbdC/s1600/Ship+Crews+in+New+Eden+1.jpg" target="_blank">how many innocent crewmen die</a> when your ship goes boom.<br />
<br />
For that reason, everything we do goes into a cost/value analysis. Everyone does this, from the freshest newbro to the most grizzled, cutthroat veteran. Sure, the former may not have as much information feeding into that analysis and the veteran will tell you he flies recklessly even as he very carefully and automatically selects his fights, but they're asking themselves essentially the same question.<br />
<br />
What are my chances?<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
In poker, they say that the thing that differentiates a winning player from a losing player isn't how big they win, but how small they lose: in other words, don't throw your money away on hands you have a low probability of winning, and make cheap mistakes instead of expensive ones.<br />
<br />
In Eve, it's very difficult to differentiate a good risk from a bad risk sometimes. Sure, folks will point to lossmails and point out all the bad decisions that led up to them, but the simple truth is that 9 times out of 10, even that very combination of mistakes won't result in a loss. The trolls will do exactly the same things and make the same mistakes, but they will get lucky and survive.<br />
<br />
We're constantly trying to push the envelope, sneak in one more cycle of ore, wait one more second before warping off, saving a few more seconds by risking a gate-to-gate jump in a pipe system with neutrals. Efficiency is the name of the game, and often, it works out okay.<br />
<br />
Sometimes, it doesn't. And those times nag at us. They tug at our awareness, telling us something isn't a good idea even when we've done it countless times in complete safety. Recent experience can make us more blind or more aware of it, of course.<br />
<br />
When I'm roaming in FW space in a frigate, It's quick align time means only squishy ships can catch it on gates, the kind of ships that usually can't tank gate guns. And that feeling persists, right up until I'm two-shotted by a gank Coercer.<br />
<br />
But sometimes, we become gunshy because of a bad experience, an experience that tips the paranoia up a bit and makes us question all those little risks we take on a daily basis.<br />
<br />
For me, it was when I lost my ratting alt's Tengu in Thera. I was nullifed, but I warped to 0 on a WH signature in Thera with about 500 mil worth of loot. I landed about 6 km from the wormhole... right on top of one of the ships that was camping it. I was decloaked by proximety and was bumped out of range of the hole before I could move that extra kilometer. It was about a 1.5 bil loss.<br />
<br />
It was a ridiculously bad combination of factors. I happened to land on a hole being camped (in my experience, Thera holes really aren't camped that often), far enough away that I couldn't immediately jump, within 2,500 m of another ship, and on grid with bumping ships that were close enough to immediately push me away.<br />
<br />
Sure, I could have avoided that loss by warping to the hole at 100 km to take a first look and bookmark the hold itself for a more accurate warp-in. But who really does that? I scan down hundreds of wormholes a week, and in 99% of them, I'd have no problems warping to 0 on the sig so I could quickly jump through and see where the other side leads. It's a fringe case, and the means of avoiding that loss really weren't practical on a regular basis. Loss is inherent to the game.<br />
<br />
I was traveling a few days later in a Proteus when I came across a gang trying to catch me. I was nullified and cloaky, but they were faster and were setting up on each of my gates. I waited in system for about twenty minutes, and fifteen or so after they all cleared out of local. I hoped they had cleared out and moved on. When I jumped the next gate, I spawned in system exactly 250 m from one of the ships in their fleet... and it wasn't moving or orbiting. I tried to overload my AB and burn out of range to re-cloak, but I was predictably caught and killed. There was really nothing I could do in that situation, other than log off for the night or use a second scout account (both of which hack the conditions of the scenario).<br />
<br />
Yet both were fresh in my mind last night when I was bringing some fresh ships in through the Nourvukaiken/Tama gate with a Viator. My old friends in Rapid Withdrawal were camping the gate with about ten or so ships, all were flashy, and they seemed to be pretty dedicated to it.<br />
<br />
Now, normally, I'd do the quick calculation, figure outhe volume of space on the surface of a sphere with a 12km radius (really, more likely about 18-20 km, when you factor in the width of the stargate itself), and decide that I had more than enough empty space in which I could spawn safely.<br />
<br />
But then that Proteus loss popped into my head. sure, I only had a couple hundred million in the cargohold, but I was counting on those ships for some fun, and re-buying and resupplying is still a pain, even with whole-fit buying. I had eight different ships, each of which would require a bunch of clicks. I couldn't be bothered to do that again!<br />
<br />
So, I decided not to risk it. I docked up on that character and waited. And waited. And waited. Apparently, it was a slow day, as RDRAW stayed on that gate for the rest of the night. In the end, I never got the ships in through Tama. I ended up playing Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (no-kill path ftw) instead.<br />
<br />
As I sit here, I'm wondering whether it was a smart move. On the one hand, I lost a day of roaming, but in reality it was only about an hour. Yet I also avoided having to absorb about a 400-mil loss. My balance is only now recovering to where it was back in May following a mass-plexing of my accounts and about 14-bil in Eve-Bet losses on the Penguins' playoff run. I really don't want to take stupid losses. Well, at least not <a href="https://zkillboard.com/kill/55245608/" target="_blank">any more of them</a>.<br />
<br />
Was it the right move? I'm still not sure. I could have gone around the other way, but that seemed like a lot of work.<br />
<br />
In any case, it was just one of the kinds of decisions we face on a daily basis, upon which our killboard turns. Every day, we face risk of loss. Most days, we come through it unscathed. Sometimes, though, we take a bloody nose. The seeds of those losses tend to be a lot more mundane and omni-present than we think.Talvorian Dexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01349917611382684205noreply@blogger.com2