A Mule in EvE

Archive for the ‘Blog Banter’ Category

Welcome to the sixteenth installment of the EVE Blog Banter, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by CrazyKinux. The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed to crazykinux@gmail.com. Check out other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

With the recent completion of the 3rd installment of the Hulkageddon last month, @CyberinEVE, author of Hands Off, My Loots!, asks: “Griefing is a very big part of EVE. Ninja Salvaging, Suicide Ganking, Trolling, and Scamming are all a very large part of the game. What do you think about all these things? You can talk about one, or all…but just let us know your overall opinion on Griefing, and any recommendations you may have to change it if you think it’s needed.”

Griefing in EvE you say?

That is an interesting thought. Certainly there is some loss in EVE, but I am not sure loss = griefing.  The four items mentioned above were:

• Trolling
• Scamming
• Suicide Ganking
• Ninja Salvaging

All 4  to me are not griefing.  To me, griefing is using something against someone, that they have no defense for, or a different choice they can make to prevent it from happening.

Perhaps trolling is griefing to a point… but it is normally Out Of Game, as I know no way to Troll anyone in game.  Perhaps Alliance chat..maybe.. but I’ve got fairly thick Rhino Skin, so most insults mean very little.  Honestly even if you know me I generally do not GET insulted if you make me mad (which happens, albeit VERY infrequently) I tend to lose any anger very rapidly. Many in my corp are the same, we post extremely infrequently to any forums, except maybe our own.  SO getting trolled increases by the amount you might post on a forum, as we post very little we just do not see it.   Granted most who play EVE are older, maybe this is a case for those who try to wade through the forum.  I learned long ago that there is not much value in that cesspool.  The fact that it IS a cesspool should not be debatable.  Choices to avoid Trolling.  A) Do not use the forums b) do not use the forums or c) expect it to happen if using the forums.

Scamming is not only part of real life but also is part of the game.  You can avoid scams by  A) being patient and reading thoroughly(( many scams target the “I need it RIGHT NOW mentality”, B) being a bit cynical and not fully trusting many, C) applying a great deal of common sense. ( you really think someone will auction off that Cynabal for 9999999.99 or 999999999.99? Can you get scammed?  Of course you can, but never put all your resources in one spot.  When I was scammed by Dynasty Bank (more than 12-14 months ago) out of my money, I wasn’t happy…I did however learn that just because someone pays you once , twice or even three times on an investment doesn’t mean they cannot take it all at some point.  They certainly can.  SO no there is a defense against this called patience and  not putting all your assets in one spot.

Suicide Ganking has a defense as well, you see them(the gankers)  come in system, you dock up.  Simple as that, even better try coming to 0.0, where NO suicide ganking happens as we eliminate neutral pilots as we see them.  Choice A ) come to 0.0, Choice B) dock up, again there is a defense against them.  Economically speaking if your mining Ore in Hi-Sec space your not going to get “rich” that way.  For proper mining 0.0 is the place.  In an extremely limited point of view you may call this griefing as it hurts a pilot economically, but for gods sake there is more to the game than  mining in Hi-security space.

Ninja salvaging also has a defense, salvage as you go or get a less experienced pilot to salvage with you to split it.  Many seem to rail against someone coming in and salvaging on a ship.  They gnash their teeth like someone is stealing a baby child from a crib.  Remember this game is not for the the solo player…can they make it…sure, but the game dynamics increase your likelihood of survival 10 fold if you fly in a group.  Fly with a group or a buddy, someone to watch your 6.

Many of the items on this griefing list are unpleasant things that can happen to a pilot, 2 of these 4 happen in hi-security space ( which should tell you something) 1 I do not see in game ( although there is a ton of trolling on the forums), and if a deal is too good to be true reread it again and again.  Many of these are sometimes painful lessons that NEED to be learned. Do we want unpleasantness to happen?  Perhaps, as it seems to teach the best.  Honestly one of the chief things the Directors do in corp is try to prevent pilots from making a fatal mistake that one of us probably has already done.

I cannot give those 4 items the tag of griefing as people must learn the core lessons.

1. DO not waggle thy tongue about, it will if left to it’s own devices, get you in trouble (Trolling)
2. DO not look for the get rich quick scheme, do it the hard way and earn your money (Scamming)
3. DO not wait for the enemy to engage you before you do anything about it, protect yourself by being vigilant (Suicide Ganking)
4. Do find yourself a friend or a group you can fly with this game is dangerous enough/ hard enough to do with a group, why compound that by going solo? (Ninja Salvaging)

EvE is about cycles, creation, modification, destruction being the chief cycle.  Destruction is a key part…without it, the need to create is greatly diminished.  Not eliminated, but diminished.  The system is always in flux, from one side to another, but losing sight of even 1 of these is missing the forest looking for 1 tree.  Learn that destruction/loss does not = the end of the world as we know it.

I will link to others who blogged about this once I know they are active.

~Manasi

Welcome to the nineteenth installment of the EVE Blog Banter, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by CrazyKinux. The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed to crazykinux@gmail.com. Check out other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

This months topic comes to us from @evepress, and he asks: The CSM: CCP’s Meta Game? – The CSM, an eve players voice to CCP. Right? In the grand scheme of things yes, the players bring up issues and the CSM presents them to CCP. But in its current iteration the CSM was supposed to be given small authority to assign CCP assets to projects that the CSM thought needed work on. As it has now come out this is not the case. So fellow bloggers, is the CSM worth it, has the CSM improved the game in any way, or is it just a well thought out scam by CCP to give us players a false sense of input in the game? What’s your take?

Currently I think the CSM at least is able to give input to CCP.  Input is one thing, helping CCP not lose sight of it’s player base is something that I thought would be a by-product of  close workings with the CSM.  In that, I think they have succeeded in small steps.

The surface problem is listed quite clearly as they have failed at tracking exactly what it is that we want, and what they have actually changed based on what the CSM has said we wanted. There is no simple way to see changes put into place.

I know some players have taken a crack at doing that but honestly where it falls down in the black whole at CCP. That sits squarely in their court.  If they do have a desire to allow the CSM to actually have some small input into the game, highlight what has been done. Whether people actually like the fact that those damn users will get some input, that might  screw up the game or not.   CCP asked for it, the fact that they have been given input ( and probably changed somethings as a result) and not told people about it is their own fault.  The CSM has had impact, but we the player base have not been told what it is, we can only guess, surmise and interpret.

The thing for many pvp’ers that I have talked to seems to be thinking is  that ” well they (CCP)  ‘changed’ the  sovereignty  system so they will not even look at us for another two years.”  The current sovereignty system is NOT fixed furthermore, it is troubled in it’s very implementation by hardware/ software instabilities that make very large , and sometimes not so large fights almost impossible to actually happen.  I like several parts of the Sov system, but the whole siege the I-hub(Twice), siege the station(Twice)   for a frigging week to capture it(actually putting the station to 0 hp)  is very pro-defender, and VERY dependent on the server staying stable during the fights. the millions of effective HP make large fleets a necessity.  Having both sieged systems and won, and having been sieged and lost I can relate very well to BOTH sides of the campaigns.

All in all the CSM views seem accurate, in that nothing of significance will be done for the PvP side of the game for 18 months.  Many, sometimes even me at times,  have been bitterly disappointed by this oversight of what some consider the ultimate end game ( there really IS no end game but many still consider it as such). PvE seems to be the direction that CCP is going and well the PvP’ers hate that.   The CSM, in my view has has basically stated this, and only now does it start to sink in with others.

Expanding what EvE is certainly comes with costs.  Costs of time, effort and money.  Far be it for me to deny someone else the money that helps them do what they do, but color me disappointed in the fact the once the CSM told CCP what the players have asked for, CCP said “not for 18 months.”

Eve is certainly becoming more  expansive, planetary interaction, fighting on planets (DUST 514), walking around in places (Incarna), having an actual avatar( Incarna), all seem to be driving towards a larger more immersive EVE experience, but is that what CCP wants or what the players want? Players I know Love the bloodthirsty  nature of PvP.  The sandbox is cruel mistress and bringing players into the picture who cannot handle the sandbox, is mostly what many people wish to avoid.  We already have enough people who say the ” sandbox is too difficult”  We play because it is difficult , not because it is easy. I think the big concern is that if enough people join and then say it is too hard that EVE will be ‘dumbed down’.  This isn’t a condemnation of people who just want a MMO where they run missions.  Nor is it a condemnation of the industrialist who builds ships for EvE.  It is a  condemnation of the cowards who refuse to fight.

interesting posts on the of all places the eve online forum:

http://www.eveonline.com/ingameboard.asp?a=topic&threadID=1353596&page=1#4

http://www.eveonline.com/ingameboard.asp?a=topic&threadID=1353596&page=1#5

So the GM’s and Devs are listening.

Oh and go read the Dev blog :

http://www.eveonline.com/devblog.asp?a=blog&bid=777

Hellmar actually chimed in yesterday as well.  Clearly we have the ears of CCP as they seem to be listening.

http://www.eveonline.com/ingameboard.asp?a=topic&threadID=1354510&page=32#952

We shall certainly see what CCP does in reaction to the communications.

See other participants:

1. Growing Pains | CrazyKinux’s Musing
2. CSM: Hoax or Serious Business? « Lost in New Eden
3. CSM-Power to the people or puppets of CCP « A whole lot of Yarrrr!!!
4. Gaming the CSM | A Mule in EvE
5. A Taste Of Democracy | StarFleet Comms
6. CSM: Player Power or Paper Tiger? | I Am Keith Neilson
7. Governance Thrash Redux? « The Ralpha Dogs
8. CCP Doesn’t Care: Blog Banter 19 « OMG! You’re a Chick?!
9. The Cataclysmic Variable: It’s Crunch Time!
10. The 19th EVE Blog Banter is upon us… and about the CSM and CCP | Victoria Aut Mors
11. More to come…

On May 6th 2010, EVE Online celebrated its 7th Anniversary. Quite a milestone in MMO history, especially considering that it is one of the few virtual worlds out there to see its population continually grow year after year. For some of you who’ve been here since the very beginning, EVE has evolved quite a lot since its creation. With the expansion rolling out roughly twice a year, New Eden gets renewed and improved regularly. But, how about you the player? How has you gaming style evolved through the years or months since you’ve started playing? Have you always been a carebear, or roleplayer? Have you only focused on PvP or have you given other aspects of the game a chance – say manufacturing. Let’s hear your story!

I prefer to think of EvE as the DEEP end of the MMO gaming pool. complicated, vicious, brutal, but beautiful in it’s complexity and depth.  there are so many sides to EvE that luckily enough I have been able to do.  Many times to a lesser extent than others but my experience has been deep and varied.

Way way back in late May 2003. Manasi was a scared little guppy swimming into the big ocean.  Schools of us “guppies” could do very little against gate rats who honestly scared the shit out of us.  In the beginning all I wanted to do was mine the rare ore’s in 0.0 I thought that more money would mean access to better stuff, I was only partially correct.  I did not really know anything at all about the game, I had no manual, even in the beginning I did not like the EvE online forums so the only way to learn… was to do.

After my first corp ( MUC) lost our CEO and two other guys I basically quit playing.  I rejoined in October 2008 after playing other MMO’s and wanting to swim in the bigger Ocean, I didn’t need a stinking lifeguard.

Now we flash forward to what I am today. No longer a small guppy but now a  Sphyraena barracuda (Giant baracudda).  Certainly I am no Carcharodon carcharias ( the Great White Shark )  nor am Ian , Orcinus orca ( the Killer Whale) {recently, an article published showed that Killer whales actually kill great whites, eat their liver, and when this happens the Great Whites run to Hawaii , from California, but enough about that}  So, I am not, nor do I claim to be, at the top of the food chain in terms of EvE. Just a fast a deadly fish in the great big Ocean that we call EvE.

When I rejoined the game in  2007, 3 years had passed, while manasi had languished in stasis.  Mining (originally) was the only way to make money, and I needed money to fly the new ships ( to this day, I still enjoy when I get in a new ship) however to me mining in EvE is boring. It was boring in 2003 and still was in 2007.

I then ran missions like a banshee until a kind soul told me I did not NEED to do so to get a jump clone( my end goal). I hated missions as they were boring as crap, repetitive in the extreme and frankly I don’t like to be bored.

I only mine when I absolutely must.I tried mining again and it felt boring and then I met the guys at VNCTI ( Valhalla Navy Technical Institute ).

With them I went to the Vale of the Silent in the North and I lived there for a short time. There is first learned some PvP basics.  In an interceptor.  Oh and I “caught the PvP Bug”.   Interceptors were all I flew for a long while, and is one of the reasons I strive to get people to learn to fly these nimble small ships.  You can fly them in a non suicidal style and survive quite well.  (Recently with all the fighting with C0ven and Stain Empire when in doubt about what was out there, size of fleets , and whether or not we could enrage I would hop in my Crow, Stiletto, Malediction or my awesome Dramiel, and have very little fear I would get shot down.) We are getting off track here, so back to history.

Then came along Alt #1 to allow me to make stuff, so an industry character was born.  I am not, nor do I claim to be, a market PvP’er, people do it, and apparently make money at it but that’s just not my cup of tea.  Industry was boring to me so I cross trained this pilot into a Carrier alt. This pilots flies my Thanatos, so far logistically but has been deployed in a  few operations.

Then we moved to Stain in June/ July of 2008.  We again fought many enemies and the skills continued to train up, when I could I switched to HAC’s.

Alt #2 came along to generate me passive income in empire, with R & D, collecting data cores, oh joy…. more missions (made better by  corp help) in getting my R & D reputation up enough to grab missions.  Since these last R&D missions  I have not run a  mission in over 22 months and this is not going to change.

PvP centric is where I am currently focused, like a laser beam.  My carrier alt now fly’s my Thanatos, my 3rd Alt now acts in a cyno generator capacity,  and I have made quite a few jumps in my Carrier.

I love the Amarr ships for not having to Carry Ammo, the Minmatar ships for the absolute devastation caused by projectiles and the Caldari for their jamming abilities.  I am fully trained in Minmatar/Amarr/Caldari  up through and included Interceptors/T2 Cruisers/Logistics/Interdictors and BS hulls. The Thanatos continues to teach me daily about more stuff that I do not know yet.

From lowly little scared miner through industry, mission running, R&D, and lastly, the most fun……. PvP combat with other pilots is by far the most fun to be had in this game! The journey has been varied and long, I would not change a thing!.

{ a side note I have had the great pleasure to swim near a  Baraccuda in the Bahamas and again near the Cayman island, one small tip do NOT wear shiny metallic objects in the water, the fish are FAST inquisitive and pretty damn fearsome to see up close}

Others linked below:

1. CrazyKinux’s Musing: The Heroes with a Thousand Faces
2. StarFleet Comms: Life. Evolved.
3. A Carebear’s Journeu: This Carebear Thinks He Is Developing Teeth
4. The Elitist: Our ventures in EVE
5. A Mule in EVE: From a guppy predator
6. Travels of the Ronin: Evolution and Adaptation
7. The Ralpha Dogs: The Past Through Tomorrow
8. Where the frack is my ship: A journey, not a destination
9. I am Keith Neilson: 7 Year Itch?
10. Inner Sanctum of the Ninveah: Evolution Me
11. EVE Opportunist: A long history of a short time
12. Roc’s Ramblings: Things Change
13. Guns Ablaze: Onwards and Upwards
14. EVE On Real Life: Haven’t you grown up yet?
15. The Fang: The path of the ninja
16. EVEOGANDA: Whoops Apocalypse!
17. EVE SOB: Learning to swim
18. The Life of a Dead Jester: My Time with EVE
19. Personal Files, Ciarente Roth: Personal Diary 18.6.112
20. Learning to Fly: Change is Good
21. Depths Unknown: Falling With Style
22. More as they get published…