Immersing Yourself in EVE

For many years the word "immersive" has been widely used in the digital industry; more notably in the video-gaming world.  It is an important property which contributes to the playability of every game.  Defined as "noting or pertaining to digital technology or images that deeply involve one's senses and may create an altered mental state".  This altered mental state can be one of the chief reasons why many people choose to play video games.  These digital worlds in which we immerse ourselves become an escape or exciting alternative to what we experience in real life.

While it is near impossible to boil down our desire for gaming into a few simple words and explanations; you can not deny that the immersion factor plays a huge role in almost all forms of media.  From books to music, first-person-shooters to documentaries;  we live in a world where our mental state is constantly shifting and adhering to the media we choose to consume.  Without getting into the psychological, physiological, or philosophical implications behind all of these "mental states",  I believe it is safe to say we all possess a degree of control over our varying immersion factors. 

When it comes to EVE Online, there are many ways we can do this.  I see it as an arbitrary spectrum:  At one end we have the hardcore role-player that never leaves character; this person has read every EVE chronicle and novel ever published, they have also written some of their own fan fiction.  They are fiercely loyal to their faction and can be seen shouting proclamations in local chat.  At the other end of the spectrum we have the ultra meta-gamer.  This player spends more time using third-party tools and spreadsheets than they do in-game.  They are heavily involved in EVE politics and scrupulously research the market and game mechanics to ensure their in-game superiority.  I am not saying their is not any cross-over between the two ends of this imaginary spectrum.  I know numerous people, including myself, who partake in multiple parts of the game.  Although, as diverse as our interests may be, we tend to get comfortable in our play style.  It can end up becoming too routine.  This can lead to disinterest and the inevitable "break" from the game.

I believe to fully appreciate all that this game has to offer, each of us should expand our horizons and try the different facets of EVE that have never held much sway over our gameplay choices.  By exposing ourselves to these different areas we will get a well-rounded experience that will increase our immersion, and thus result in more enjoyable gameplay.  I encourage you try some of these different areas of EVE.  Join an RP channel, tinker around with EFT, read a chronicle, go exploring, put a chunk of ISK towards some risky investments; whatever you do, try something different.  Wherever you fall on my arbitrary "immersion spectrum", know that all of us have a commonality in our interest of science fiction and internet spaceships.  If a person enjoys one aspect of this game, chances are you will at least be able to appreciate that aspect and gain some knowledge along the way. 

One last thing.  If you haven't heard the old EVE soundtrack in awhile, or have never heard it before, I think it's well worth a visit.  I played the whole thing while on an exploration session the other night and it was pretty awesome.  You can find it on SoundCloud here.

Late Boarding on the Sov/Structure Changes Hype Train, Pt. 2

In part one of this entry I eagerly wrote of the many changes that are coming to the sovereignty and structure elements of EVE Online.  These topics are thoroughly covered in the semi-recent dev blogs posted by Fozzie (sov) and Ytterbium (structure).  By internet standards this is old news, but I'm still surprised to not see more elation and chatter about these topics.  The never ending assault on POCOs and POSs continues, sovereignty wars rage on, things are persisting as-usual.  Seemingly unbeknownst to the majority of players, change is coming.  The old ways of structure bashing and lengthy sovereignty takeover will be snuffed into ash, and like a phoenix; the new system will gloriously rise in an inferno of change to purify the lengthy and monotonous system which we presently take for granted.

If you haven't figured out by now, I abhor structure farming, the mere mention of POS bashing sends me into a fit of disinterest.  The EVE experience I was so hoping to log-in to becomes bile in my mouth.  Admittedly, many times these events turn out to be something worthwhile.  They can result in decent escalation and fantastic fights, but equally likely they result in cat-and-mouse games with nothing being accomplished other than a reinforcement timer or single explosion, followed by an order being given to set destination to "home".  I also detest POS management and moon mining, need I explain? With these two new systems being integrated in the near-future, we can say goodbye the humdrum and move on to more meaningful gameplay.  You're probably still not as excited as I am, but that's alright, I'm prone to enthusiasm...  

Instead of delving into every detail of the upcoming structure changes,  I'm going to highlight a few aspects which I found most interesting (all of these are clearly designated by CCP to be a work-in-progress and are therefore subject to change):

Custom Fitting:

No longer will you have to anchor multiple items inside of a POS to carry out the desired function.  All of the functions will be determined by what you fit on your structure.  This should result in an easier management system and will probably (hopefully?) come with some interesting visual differences between each structure, much like what we see with strategic cruisers.


Visually Captivating:

Each type of structure will come with a much more distinct look and feel.  Not to mention they are also going to be much larger than what we are currently used to seeing.  I imagine with the increased polygon count which CCP is striving for, these new structures will be a sight to behold.  Also, the new visual effects for anchoring structures looks marvelous.

Choice of Designating Access: 

It will be your choice as to who has access to each structure which you deploy.  No longer will your structures have to be bound to your corporation or alliance.  By all means, help your fellow corp and alliance mates as much as possible, but nothing is keeping you from anchoring an industry or research hub for public access and profit.

Side note:  

The dev blog seemed to be eluding to the goal of replacing the current NPC infrastructure with player owned objects.  This is further hinted to in an image on the dev blog which shows a mock-up structure management window that displays player owned structures in 0.8-1.0 systems.  It is currently impossible to anchor starbase structures in systems with security 0.8 and above.  Perhaps this restriction will be lifted or reduced and we will indeed see the majority of structure use migrate from NPC structures to player owned structures.

I am still curious for more details surrounding the implementation process and how the transition will take place.  Even with a smooth transition I believe we'll see yet another sharp rise in mineral prices (miners rejoice!).  Since mining really isn't my forte, I'm more thrilled to see how these changes will drastically morph player interaction.  Pretty cool stuff!  I will now step off my hypebox and patiently wait for more information on these prodigious changes to this amazing game.

Late Boarding on the Sov/Structure Changes Hype Train, Pt. 1

I have been procrastinating, until today, the reading of the recent dev blogs regarding the upcoming changes to sovereignty and player-controlled structures in EVE Online.  Before my examination I had envisioned the future changes to be of limited consequence.  I assumed the apparent hype to be reserved for those who partake in large-scale EVE politics and sovereignty control, i.e. Goons, Northern Associates, Shadow, etc...to my delightful surprise, this is not the case.

I cannot credit my new home under a rock to any particular reason; perhaps my recent return to EVE and playing catch-up has blinded me to these potential game-changing changes, or the simple lack of conversation about these topics among the people I play with is the reason.  Maybe I just need to browse the EVE Online forums more....whatever the reason, I am thoroughly impressed and amped-up for the direction the developers are taking.  I have boarded the hype train and am feverishly stoking the furnace.

Granted, the specific changes outlined in the dev blogs are subject to revision and intentionally labeled as a "work-in-progress", but the goals of these changes should be maintained as they are developed.  Specifics aside, the direction in which the game is headed is very exciting, it will revolutionize the way players interact with the game universe and each other.  There IS reason to be hyped for these changes, if you have not already, will you not come aboard the train with me?

Rather than attempting a complete explanation which would be lacking, I encourage you to read Politics by Other Means: Sovereignty Phase Two and Back Into the Structure, If you don't have the time or motivation, I don't blame you.  They're rather long and I had them on my "to-do" list for the better part of a month.  Below is a summarization of the the new sovereignty system.  I will follow up with some of the specifics regarding the new structure system in Part 2 of this post at a later date.

The Old:

Currently there are four main structures involved in null-sec sovereignty.  These are the Infrastructure Hubs (I-Hubs), Territorial Claim Units (TCUs), Conquerable Stations, and Sovereignty Blockade Units (SBUs).  In order to claim a system, an alliance must anchor and online a TCU.  Establishing sovereignty over a system gives the benefits of being able to anchor I-Hubs, 25% reduction in starbase fuel cost for the alliance, and protection in the form of reinforcement timers for conquerable stations belonging to the sovereign alliance.

The I-Hubs allow the system to be upgraded for that alliance which brings about many more benefits such as establishing jump bridges, cyno jammers, capital ship construction arrays, and PVE upgrades.  The I-Hubs also provide another form of protection for the territorial claim unit,  as the TCU in a system will be invulnerable until the all the I-Hubs in the system are destroyed.  

Sovereignty blockade units come into play when an invading alliance is trying to conquer the system.  SBUs must be onlined by the invading alliance at more than 50% of the stargates in that system (e.g. 2/2 gates, 3/4 gates, 3/5 gates, etc...) to cause the I-Hubs and any conquerable stations to become vulnerable.  Both the I-Hubs and stations have dual reinforcement timers, one for low shields, and one for low armor.  The station manager sets a desired exit time for the reinforcement of both the I-Hubs and station; there is a 24±3 hour delay for I-Hubs and a 48±3 hour delay for stations, plus any difference between the time of the attack and the desired exit time.  For a much more in-depth look at current sovereignty mechanics, check this out.

All this really means is that taking over a system is a long and arduous process, as all of these structures are tied to each other and there are multiple reinforcement timers.  I'm sure many of you have read about and/or witnessed some of these incredibly massive battles.  While this may seem exciting from an outside perspective, I would think the increased time dilation and the large amount of time being spent pelting structures would get old very fast.  The current mechanics around contesting sovereignty also limits the fight to one system, which ends up creating a bottleneck and forces players into instant ship escalation.  "Bring the biggest thing you have, don't worry about moving, and welcome to time dilation insanity"; doesn't sound like much fun to me.

The New:

The beauty of the new sovereignty system is that it rids the need for drawn-out sessions of structure farming and brings in new elements that encourage mobile fleets and requires much more military logistics strategy.

Sovereignty blockade units are being removed and replaced by a module called the Entosis Link.  This will be a high slot module with low ship fitting costs.  It will be used to contest I-Hubs, TCUs, and stations.  The module will have a cycle time that can vary from 5 to 40 minutes depending on which structure it's being used on and the system defenses that are in-place for that structure.  While the Entosis Link is active your ship will have increased vulnerability as it will be immobile and unable to receive remote assistance.  The Entosis Link can also be used defensively to pause an attacking players Entosis cycle.  

Along with the removal of the SBU mechanic, each of the three main structures involved in sovereignty control can be independently captured and held by different alliances.  So there may be systems where the I-Hub, TCU, and station are controlled by competing alliances.  Each structure will still maintain its historic role and provide similar benefits to that of the old (current) system.  

When a structure is successfully contested by an Entosis Link, the structure will go into reinforcement mode for approximately 48 hours.  This timer will expire during a four hour "prime-time" window that is set by the defending alliance of the structure.  This ensures that the alliance has the opportunity to mount a successful defense.  When the structure's reinforcement exits during this prime-time window, a new event will start.  Objects called Command Nodes will randomly spawn in systems within the parent constellation, regardless of the sovereignty of other systems in that constellation.  They will be explicitly labeled and show up on the anomaly scanner, so it will be easy to figure out which nodes belong to the structure of interest.  The Command Nodes will be captured using the Entosis Link, thus starts the tug-of-war.  Each Command Node will be worth points, the alliance with the most points at the end of the event will win.  The defending alliance will usually have the home advantage and receive more points (depending on other factors) for capturing Command Nodes than the attackers.  If the I-Hub or TCU is the contested structure, and the defending alliance is unable to win the Command Node event, it will blow up and allow an alliance to anchor and online their own I-Hub or TCU.  

If a station is the object of interest then the losing alliance gives up control of the station and it will enter a 48 hour Freeport Mode, during this time anyone will be able to dock and use the station services free-of-charge.  When it exits the Freeport Mode, another event will begin that is similar to the first one.  The difference being is that the Command Node event tied to a station after Freeport Mode can be won by any alliance, and there will be no defense mechanics in place for the previous owners.  Mechanically it will be a free-for-all.  Here is a link to a flow chart provided by CCP that illustrates each situation.  

The mechanics of this new system will make it harder for large alliances to hold on to unused systems and opens up great potential for smaller alliances.  With the induction of phase 1 of the sovereignty changes (capital ship jump timers), this also means that alliances will have to make some tough logistical choices when defending or attacking in attempts to capture Command Nodes during these events.  This should result in a much more enjoyable PVP experience that limits the blob factor of what we see in current sovereignty wars. 

Overall I think this is a fantastic approach to the problems we face with the current system.  I imagine there are some people who don't like this new approach; no longer will they be able to hold sway over large regions of space through pure blob force and induced boredom.  They will have to actively fight and maintain each structure within each system, ignored pieces of space will soon fall to those who wish to stake their own claim.  New Eden is about to get a lot bigger, and I'm all for it.

Riding the Ever-Changing EVE Bike

"Like riding a bike."  These words are the epitome of the recognizable and mundane.  Many things in life fall under this category, once learned, they are almost impossible to forget.  This concept is easily applied to many video games, such as some of my favorite first-person shooters and other unnamed RPGS.  EVE Online is definitely not one of those games.

If you have ever taken an extended sabbatical from EVE Online, or are just beginning your EVE Online adventure, you are well aware of the trials faced when diving into this rich and complex video game.  As I come back from a 1.5 year break, I'm excitedly crawling my way back to the level of competency I had when I left the game.  For now, most of my time spent "playing" is actually spent reading about changes or fiddling around with new ship fittings on EFT.  

Not only am I playing catch-up with all of the major changes (the biggest being capital ship jump travel),  I'm finding that I have forgotten how to do many simple things that used to take little thought.  My fellow corp-mates were about to go on a frigate roam and told me to grab a fully fit Tristan out of the corp hangar.  I spent a good five minutes trying to remember how to access the corporate hangar before finally finding the right menu.  Shortly afterward, I was helping my friend move his jump freighter.  I shamefully admit that I had to Google search how to broadcast a cyno before my friend could make the jump<ins>facepalm</ins>.

If you find yourself in a similar situation I encourage you to read all the patch notes which have been released since you started taking your break.  Read them in chronological order (starting with the oldest first) and plow your way through to the latest patch.  This will alleviate some of the confusion you may feel while getting back into the game.

If you're a new player I strongly suggest reading up on as much as you can about the game.  Pay close attention to how dated your resources are, as they may not be applicable to the game anymore.  There are many guides and articles on the EVE wiki worth checking out.  Finish the in-game tutorial and join the "Help" channel.  There are amazing people in that channel that can help you answer almost any question.  It can even be a good resource for those that consider themselves EVE experts.

Taking a break has given me a whole new appreciation for this game.  The intricacies and numerous changes that have taken place in the short span of a little under two years is a testament to the greatness of EVE Online.  I am invigorated knowing that my time and money is invested in a game where the developers are dedicated and passionate about what they do.  CCP's open ears to feedback and their communication with the players far surpasses that of any other developer.  I'm happy to know that I'm playing a game this is continually modified and added upon.  Some of the changes currently being presented at Fanfest 2015 look incredible.  I cannot wait to see how this game will be morphed and shaped into something less recognizable in the years to come.

"Unreasonable things" that I want in EVE

I've been extremely busy for the last few weeks and now I can finally finish my post regarding the list of potential changes that CSM8 and CCP asked players to vote on.  Many of the items on this list are changes that I would love to see, some are more aesthetic (but still important), and some of them are already slated to make it into the next patch.  You can find the list here, these are my top six  picks from the list:

-Expand skill queue window to 48 or 72 hours.
-Killmails to also show Logistic pilots, if they rep the person that did the damage/killing blow.

-Increase limit of saved fittings from 100 to 200+.
-Add visual cone shape showing curent D-scan area both in map and in space
-Tactical overlay (Ctrl-D) should be able to show velocity vector (direction+speed) of displayed objects.
-Add small gang highsec/lowsec PVP/PVE events to the game.


When contemplating the potential changes from this list it got me thinking about some things that I would love to see put in the game, but aren't quite as reasonable as the list CSM8 provided. Here are some of the unreasonable changes I'd want for EVE.

Real-time spacial control:
I love flight combat simulators; ever since EVE's release I've always wanted a system that would bring a real-time combat element to EVE. The typical frontal aim-and-shoot seen in most combat flight simulators wouldn't be applicable to EVE, but I believe a control system could be implemented that would give players the ability fly their ships in real-time. Much like what we see in flight simulators and other live action flight video games.

Jovian space, ships and mods:
Make it hard to gain access to, make the ships and mods rare as hell, make the ships and mods crazy expensive, I don't care. Give it to us!

Increase the uniqueness of each system:
Give more systems different places to visit, give each system a unique "feel". Create more unique complexes, monuments, astronomical anamolies, give each system a backstory, etc.

Make orbital bodies orbit!:
I'm pretty sure that in real-life planets and other orbital bodies don't stay in the same spot around their parent object for all eternity. I'd like to see the progression of planets around their stars, moons around their planets, and the like. I know many objects take multiple Earth years to orbit their parent object, but some take much less. It'd be cool to see! To solve problems of useless bookmarks just implement a bookmark system that records locations based on a grid of the orbital object which you are near at the time of BM creation, not the grid of the entire system.

More skillpoints for new players:
If EVE is going to continue to gain subscribers we need to make the lives of new players a lot better. Many people I know stopped playing the game because they felt overwhelmed by all of the skills they were "behind" on. New players should receive an extra 5-10M unallocated skillpoints after paying for their first month, this would help lessen that feeling of "noobness" that new players experience and in turn keep more first-time players subscribing. To make everyone happy just give all current subscribers the same bonus before implementing the change.

In-game mini-games/gambling:
Face it, EVE can get very slow at times. What better way to pass the time than by playing your favorite card game with your fellow fleet members or corp mates? Make it interesting and allow ISK/item betting. Key term here being "in-game", I don't want to use third party programs while I'm playing, it takes away from the immersion factor.

What big changes to EVE Online would you like to see?

LNA's First Alliance Tournament

Within a few minutes of our match against Ministry of Inappropriate Footwork on Saturday, we knew our time in ATXI was over.  It was a well-fought match and one of the more enjoyable ones LNA had during the tournament, but our Minmatar rush setup could not compete with the raw blaster power of the Gallente rush setup that MIF fielded that day.  When it was obvious we no longer had a chance of winning, GF's were posted in local and we as a team congratulated ourselves on how far we made it during the tournament.  I don't think anyone had any expectations for LNA, but it was shown that we are not to be taken lightly.  I think everyone on the LNA team had a great experience with the AT, scheduling was a little tough for some and I know it became stressful at times, but I believe we all walked away with a sense of pride and accomplishment.


For me it was exciting to be a part of one of my most favorite things in EVE Online.  I have watched every alliance tournament that has been broadcast and always payed close attention to the teams involved.  I love the theory-crafting facet of EVE Online, and to be able to apply that to developing setups for the tournament was very enjoyable.  It was really cool to watch the replays and hear people who I have been watching commentate for years talk about our team.  Experiencing the tournament first hand is something I'll never forget and I hope to be a part of it again next year.

What does the future hold in store for LNA?  It's anyone's guess, we'll continue the fight in the Amarr/Minmatar warzone and focus on lowsec pvp.  People will come and go and we'll continue to have fun blowing stuffs up and being blown up by whatever comes across our path.  There's talk of forming a team for the Syndicate Competitive League, but you can be sure we'll be trying our best to make an appearance in next year's Alliance Tournament.

Another LNA Victory!

Congratulations to my fellow teammates and the whole of LNA!  It was a very solid win against TEST alliance, needless to say we brought a very good counter to their setup.  I'll provide a link on this post to the youtube video of our match once it is posted by CCP.   I'm very excited to see some more internet spaceship explosions tomorrow!  Don't miss our match against Exodus. at 20:15 EVE Time!

Weekend two of ATXI

I'd like to wish all of the participants in this weekend's matches the best of luck!  Be sure to tune into www.twitch.tv/ccp to watch all of the action!  Don't miss the match of TEST vs. LNA at 20:00 EVE time, it should be a good one! :)

I'm very curious to see what kind of ship setups each team will be using.  Last week we witnessed the raw power of Dominix sentry setups and that of the Vindicators/Kronos.  I imagine we'll see many more flag ships being fielded and hopefully some unique setups.  It will be interesting to see which ships get banned as well.  See you in the battle arena!

Who are Late Night Alliance?

First of all I'd like to congratulate my fellow teammates in Late Night Alliance for winning our first two matches in the EVE Online Alliance Tournament XI.  We've had a great time preparing for this tournament and to finish that strong in the first weekend is very gratifying.  You can watch our first two matches here and here.

So who are LNA?  We are a conglomerate of faction warfare corporations fighting for the Minmatar Republic.  In fact, we are one of the first Minmatar faction warfare alliances to be founded after CCP made the necessary changes in Inferno.  As Shahfluffer's put in his interview with The Mittani; we are "The alliance that was born out of a group of Faction Warfare corps made up of ‘MURICANS, Canadians, people that live upside down (Aussies and Kiwis), a random Mexican and Persian, and Gurls who would log on in "late US" timezone to kill stuffs gloriously."   You can read the entire interview here, it will give you a basic understanding of our attitude and how mighty and hairy our chests really are.

We are a group of players who log in the game to blow stuff up.  We could care less about politics, sovereignty, who's big and who's not, and the like.  While some of us do pay attention to the various happenings and changes in EVE politics, our primary focus is having fun and bagging internet spaceships.  We do have alliances and corporations who we particularly like to shoot at (Eve Uni, Fweddit), but for the most part we believe in equal opportunity engagement.  The core membership of the alliance comes from various pirates, low-seccers, and ghey knights who have been involved in FW for the last few years, our cornerstone being the infamous Bahamut420.  We drink a lot and are accustomed to tossing around "tasteful" jibes at each other.  All of us are big fans of Puffins.

Overall we're a great bunch of people to fly with.  We have our moments, as with all alliances, but for the most part we have things figured out.  Feel free to head over to our home in The Bleak Lands region if you're looking for some low-sec PVP;  at least one of us will be online willing to GCC you for a good time.  

To Matchmake or Not to Matchmake?

As my alliance prepares for the upcoming Alliance Tournament XI, I am realizing how much I enjoy organized and regulated PVP in EVE.  Now don't get me wrong, I love the "sandbox" aspect of EVE, it is one of the reasons EVE is such a great game, but I do wish there were more options for creating fair matches between players interested in fighting each other.

I've heard many of the arguments against a matchmaking system, and most of them make a fair point, but there has to be some way we can preserve the sandbox of New Eden while still enabling players to participate in fights without having to worry about being blobbed at every turn.  The possibility of being blobbed is part of the fun in itself, but I still yearn for a system that allows for a regulated fight.

I've heard many people point to FW complexes as the solution since there are restrictions on ship types depending on the size of the plex.  While its nice to not have to worry about a battleship showing up to a frig fight, it still doesn't solve to problem of being overrun by a fleet with twice your number, and the "bring more ships" option sometimes just isn't plausible.

Some have also said that one should go to Singularity (the test server) if all you want to do is blow stuff up.  To me this is another cop out; I want what I do in-game to still have a lasting effect on the game world.  When you take risk of loss out of the equation it dulls the intensity of EVE PVP.  Although I will admit going nuts on the test server can be fun from time to time :)

I'm aware of free-for-all tournaments that are hosted throughout the game universe, these are a lot of fun to participate in but utterly lack what constitutes a fair match.  I want to be able to test my skills against an equally equipped enemy with no room for argument.

The major issue I have with matchmaking in EVE is that it would take away the sandbox, or the randomness of the game.   If a full fledged matchmaking system was implemented I believe there would be a collapse of activity in the game world, which of course is a horrible thing to ponder.

 Look at World of Warcraft; there is a dungeon finder, raid finder, and a PVP system that is entirely based around matchmaking.  You can literally stand in one location and queue up for almost all of the end-game content this game has to offer.  While providing convenience for their players, the developers have consequently made it so almost nobody goes out into the game world which they so tirelessly worked over.  This kind of system would ruin EVE and must be avoided.

So how can it be done?  I think in order to preserve the sandbox, but still allow players to participate in matches outside of the alliance tournament, CCP needs to give some in-game tools to players that will allow them to set up their own regulated tournaments without running the risk of them being crashed by other players.  A system like this would take a lot of work to implement and would have to be restricted in some way, but I think it would be worth it in the long run.

I imagine a system where a CEO or executor could initiate a match against another corporation or alliance.  On this theoretical interface you could edit the match date/time, participant list, ship restrictions, ship bans, and other match variables.  It could be set up with a point system like the one currently being used in the alliance tournament, the CEO's could assign certain ship types to each of their members (without the opposing team knowing the ship types, of course).  When the match is about to take place the game would run a check on each participant to make sure they are in their assigned ship and using the allowed modules/implants.

If they pass the check the player is "locked in", they then would choose the distance they want to be from the match beacon and are teleported to the match area.  This match area could be an un-scannable deadspace pocket or off-grid system with no way in or out. Nobody would be able to perform any action until the match begins.  There could be some sort of bubble around the match area that instantly pops any ship that moves out past 125km of the beacon.  There would also have to be some sort of point tracking system to decide on a winner if the match goes over a certain time limit.  After the match is over all players would be teleported back to where they were originally before the match began, and a winner is assigned.

I know there would be many issues to be worked out with a system like this, not to mention it would take a shit ton of work to implement and fine tune, but wouldn't it be fun?  I believe all players should have the opportunity to experience something akin to the alliance tournament, rather than just those select few who get to do it only once a year.

Moving and the Science Behind the Sci-Fi of EVE

Until this last week, moving into a new home has never been distressing for me.  I would gather and organize my few posessions and load them into a truck in an order that maximized the efficiency of the packing and that of the consequental unpacking.  This time it was different, a lot has changed in my life since my last move; I'm in a steady relationship, I have a new job, and I've bought a LOT of stuff.  This time I felt like a Hoarder pilot trying to organize multiple stations worth of unpackaged goods in 10 different regions while using auto-pilot and having my assetts, sort-by, and stack all menu options disabled.  Can you spell cluster-f***?

At one point I had an amazingly nerdy thought, "God I wish I had a jump freighter."  Which got me thinking about the plausibility of future generations obtaining some of the technologies portrayed in EVE Online.  I was reminded of a series of articles published under the EVE online backstory that are mock scientific articles which give pseudoscientific explanations to some of the technologies that make the fiction of EVE possible (FTL Travel, FTL communications, Cloning, etc...)

I re-read these pieces and was very impressed with how each pseudoscientific idea or principle was presented.  Many explanations referenced and extrapolated upon real-word scientific principles and used scientific termonology while doing so, which gave the articles an air of credibility.  Out of all "explanations" for sci-fi technology I've encountered in media, these articles are the ones that really set the bar.  They were both fun to read and thought-provoking; reading them made me feel as if all of this fiction could one day become a reality

There are many leaps, bounds, hurdles, and stumbles before humanity can even hope to obtain interstellar travel, but I really hope I live to see the day when those awesome capabilities are within our grasp.  Let's hope that governments and parents alike don't lose sight of the importance of education and the proliferation of science and math.   Perhaps one day we will witness the creation of a "depleted vacuum", "mass boson sphere", or the "entanglement of quantum states".  :)

A Reflection

The ten year anniversary of EVE Online has come and gone.  With it came the reflection of EVE exploits throughout the last decade.  A commemoration video was released by CCP  demonstrating the graphical changes the game has undergone since its release and giving estimates of 40 mil. ships destroyed, 14 bil. NPC crew members killed, and 15 mil. pods destroyed in the last ten years.  During the height of the buzz surrounding the ten year anniversary I was just coming back into EVE, and I never really gave the event much thought until last week when I was going through my old things and I found this...

This is the original box set for EVE Online when it was released in May 2003, it came with a bitchin' poster, CDROM, and a short manual.  The poster features a Bantam mining the shit out of another Bantam, a couple Condors, Vexors, and what looks to be an early version of an Impairor.  The box has a Fed Navy Comet doing some damage to a Caldari station.

When I found this token from the past it gave me a greater appreciation for really how much has happened and how far the game has come since its launch.  Looking back to my earliest memories of the game, I believe the anniversary event failed to capture the magnitude of all that has changed.  At least in addressing the finer details, which I find enjoyable to reflect upon....

During EVE's release, cruisers were the biggest hull available.  I remember seeing a Moa one week after release and thinking how much of a total bad-ass this demigod of EVE must be to have obtained such a behemoth.  Capsuleers from surrounding systems converged on the Moa in their rookie ships to gaze at this paragon of death and destruction; their eyes gleaming with dreams of one day owning such a ship.

Not long after, battleships were introduced to the game and I made it my goal to obtain a Megathron before summer's end.  Back then mining and industry were really the only options for most players to accumulate any wealth.  Missions gave little ISK and pirate bounties were even worse; level 2 agents were the highest available, no incursions, no moon mining, etc.  It was the players, various plexes that were few and far between, asteroid belts, and stations.  With determination I undocked my Imicus day-to-day, pelting omber after omber with my mining laser of justice; slaying asteroids left and right until I was able to afford a Thorax.  With more than twice the amount of available mining lasers at my disposal, my Megathron drew ever closer.

When I finally obtained my goal I was stuck not knowing what to do next.  I had reached the pinnacle of EVE yet I dare not risk my hard-earned battleship in the open field, and I refused to adulterate my achievement by mounting mining lasers.  So began my pull away from industry and into the world of PVP (with smaller ships, of course), but that is a story for another time.

Back then there was no such thing as signature radius, tracking, explosion radius, and the like.  It was all about who had the biggest gun with the longest range.  One can imagine why battleships (especially railgun ships) were so powerful; having the ability to insta-pop frigates and blast down cruisers in seconds.  The EVE community was in its infancy and it was exciting to make friends and connections.  Null sec was hardly populated and the seeds of the big-name alliances were just starting to spread their hand out over the red areas of the map.

Most of the convenient features we enjoy today were not implemented; there was a very limited social interaction and trade system, no sovereignty, limited missions, no faction warfare, no WH space, comparatively few modules and fewer ships...you get the picture.  A current player may look back on this game and scoff, but at the time it was a remarkable achievement.  MMO's were just starting to make their mark and the complexity of the game was astounding at the time, especially without the online resources we have today.  Although I would never willingly go back to "the old days", they breed a certain nostalgia that many other games from my past cannot compete with.

To see how far this game has come in the last ten years only makes me more excited to see what is in store for us down the road.