I just received an eve-mail from my loyal engineers regarding the salvation of my beloved Malediction; Bite-Back. She was found drifting around a small moon deep in Gallente space, hopelessly smashed after a vicious battle to re-capture some renegade slaves was lost.
The ship was thought to have been destroyed but a small convoy of Gallente haulers found her slight signal and homed in on the wreckage. Fortunately one of the Gallente crew members was a good friend of EvS and contacted him to enquire of the origins of the ship as she bore the mark of the I-A corporation. This ship and I had been through a lot together and I was incredibly annoyed when I had to abandon her to the Minmatar rebels, but I couldn't bring myself to destroy such a beautiful hull.
The engineers kindly included an engine test of one of the recovered F-35 thrusters and I'm pleased to see that at least one of them has made it. They have assured me that the ship can be repaired but it will be almost entirely a new vessel, save for the recovered engine. I just hope that she still feels as sharp as she once was, and that we can get re-acquainted again soon.
A Long Lost Friend
Alternatives
Back in the dark ages my security rating was almost a perfect -10.00. I say almost as it is incredibly difficult to hit the magic -10.00 security rating and only a handful of pirates have managed such acclaim (It’s one of my many missions in this life and the next). During this time it became increasingly difficult to obtain supplies due to the local Concord forces wanton destruction of my vessel. Faction ammunition was especially hard to come by even with my loyal I-A Corporation funding my motley crews’ cause deep in low sec.
For me an ALT account became essential, but fearing a significant loss to my training gain I decided to temporarily purchase a slave account and train an ALT to the required levels to make supplying my escapades easier. The plan was to train Miss NEXUS to the required levels then transfer the account onto the main. This never happened as I found new and interesting ways to use my new found freedom.
As an ALT Miss NEXUS has the liberty to do what she pleases even more so than myself, Mr NOXx. As a member of an NPC corporation she cannot be held accountable for her actions. This means that War-Declarations are forbidden and complaints are unheard beyond direct contact. I’ve come to believe that if you wish to pirate it is wise, nay essential to use an ALT to ‘clean-up’ in the wake of destruction left by such acts of aggression and to maintain a healthy supply line to Empire.
Miss NEXUS has become an invaluable part of my repertoire of piracy in many ways. She regularly supplies me with faction ammunition, acts as my eyes and ears in low sec and helps me maintain a legitimate foothold on my home; Sarum Prime.
There are many other uses for an ALT dependant on ones intentions, but if you don’t have an ALT it is recommended to get one, particularly if you intend to operate within the lawless confines of piracy. CCP regularly offer discounts for buying slave accounts(The power of two) but if you don’t mind losing a week or so in training(an ALT cannot be trained simultaneously to your main), an ALT can be born from a spare POD slot of which every pilot has 2 of(3 including your main).
Of course this is entirely up to you, but I can personally vouch for the practicalities of having a loyal slave.
Happy Hunting...
The Headlines
Always upon the pulse of our beloved galaxy, the EvE Tribune is a plethora of useful guides, informed opinions and the occasional story. If you want to know what’s hot in New Eden there are few places better than the EvE Tribune.
I’ve been reading with earnest for the last few years and I look forward to each weekly edition with great enthusiasm. They occasionally have ship fittings which prove to be very capable, as well as Kirith’s Fighting Spacecraft; a detailed report on a chosen spacecraft detailing it’s development history and the reasons behind it’s commission. Most recently it was the turn of the Amarr Battle-cruiser; Prophecy and it’s command versions, which just also happens to be some of my favourite ships within the Amarr Navy.
A few weeks ago a link to comment was finally included on the posted articles, a welcomed addition which confirmed that the readers of the Tribune are all fine pilots who crave intelligent and topical conversation. This week there’s a hilarious write-up on the mercenary corporation; Angelic Souls of Fury Reborn, in which Miyamoto Isoruku hired them to do the business on his enemies. What transpired was almost completely pathetic according to Miyamoto. Of course this is here-say and the subsequent comments were a mixed bag of flame n’ shame. The topic was so potent even the legendary Garmon submitted his pennies worth to the argument as I’m sure he’s never short on the motivation to conflict.
Over the past month there have been regular interviews for the CSM candidates to put forward their respective cases for election. I’m not one for politics except when confronted with a ransom opportunity but it’s still an interesting read.
The EvE Tribune is always a well written, invaluable and informative weekly e-zine for which I highly recommend to any pilot seeking relevant and currant articles on the status quo of New Eden.
Related Links
EvE Tribune
2001: A Space Odyssey
When it was released in 1968, 2001: A Space Odyssey was Stanley Kubriks' masterpeice and has since become one of the most important and critically acclaimed films in history. There are few films I have seen that can claim to have pioneered viaual effects or that can match the grandeur of the visuals or the scale of the subject matter, and I consider that this film to be the greatest film I have ever seen.
As a fan of both Arthur C Clark and Kubrik I read the book and watch the film regularly, I have even bought the gigantic psycadelic iris poster. I especially love the opening sequence where the planets converge in a line as Richard Strauss'; Also Sprach Zarathustra swells the music to incredible heights.
When I watched this version performed by the Portsmouth Symphonia Orchestra I simply cried with laughter. It's absolutely brilliant in a really bad way.
Related Links
2001: A Space Odyssey
2001: A SPace Odyssey Explained
An Astronomical Oversight
With Dominion, the fidelity of our beloved galaxy is to be completed, finally. Astronomical bodies such as planets and moons are to be lavished upon with great attention and illumination. This marvel can already be observed on Singularity and it’s a sight to behold. Such delight prompts endless snapping of the camera drones aperture while these sights are novel but, although a welcomed improvement in line with our adored space-craft and stations I am unsure whether the powers that be will implement the lushness with the necessary thought to make New Eden consistent.
Our solar system has several types of planets and these are formed and determined by the gravity effects from the central star and each others interactions over billions of years. Planets which nestle comfortably inside the asteroid belt are smaller and are composed mainly of rocks of various elements. These planets usually possess atmospheres and little or no moons as their gravity is too feeble to create such masses. The outer planets tend to be gas giants harbouring many moons within their huge gravitational fields as well as beautiful rings of debris in some rarer cases. The further out one goes from the central star the colder and more inert the planets become until they resemble nothing more than snowballs of unremarkable ore and frozen gas. The light available to such planets is far weaker than the central occupants enjoy making for some very dark objects indeed.
These details are superfluous to the mechanics of New Eden and Singularity is not subject to the same laws as the reality we enjoy, but I hope and trust that CCP look towards the composition of our own heavenly objects for inspiration, as well as the mechanics of solar system creation.
Related Links
Planet Formation
In Space No-One Can Hear You Cry
As a pirate I occasionally receive hate-mails from disgruntled ‘customers’ who complain that I took from them in a few moments that which they had worked hard for months. I would just like to share some of these with you complete with grammar mistakes.
Hello. Why did you shoot me? I didn’t shhot you yet you shot me. If you don’t give me back the property you stole fom me then I will have to email ccp and get you banned from the game. I hope you read this soon because I will send letter next week an get you banned. Its up to you if you want me to not get you kicked from the game then get me back asap.
Okay, I shot you because it’s funny. Period. Thanks for the hate mail though, it’s the icing on the cake. Yum yum.
I hate people like you. You ruin the game for everyone. You think that you are clever attacking players smaller than you but it is just a cowards way. If I see you again I am goinf to attack you and take you life then you will be sorry for eva attacking me.
Scumbag
This one made me laugh because the pilot seems to have signed his letter as Scumbag.
I cant understand why you want to blow my ship up. What did I do to you? Why don’t you just f(ed)k off and die you f(ed)king asshole.
Just a quick note this one. Apparently I am a asshole (a donkey?) because I play the game properly. An interesting perspective but partially accurate, parts of me do resemble a donkey.
Normally I honour my prey by offering them a free instant re-cloning service, but if I ever receive hate-mails I normally send an appreciation of one million ISK so that they can rebuild their space-ships, re-enter low sec and become victims all over again.
If any of you plucky pirates have hate mails please post them here, I love a good giggle.
Happy Hunting…
“I Name This Space-Ship…”
In an ideal galaxy the name of your ship should represent the nature of that ship. If you hunt for prey however, it can be a disadvantage calling your ship “I’m gonna kill you.” I have seen various pilots name their ships ‘Veldspar’ believing that the vessel will be overlooked upon scan results.
Occasionally I have come across a ship or pilot with what can only be described as a mechanical name. Ships such as 11555866 or pilots called 44115632. These vessels never respond to hails and generally operate within Empire constantly mining the local minerals repeatedly without pause. I believe that these individuals are not POD pilots of flesh and bone, but they represent a scourge known as a Macro; a program designed to replace the thought processes of a real POD pilot. The motives behind such installations are unclear but I suspect that the black market is somehow involved.
The name of ones POD is also important. I never leave dock without first tagging my POD with a non-descriptive name, usually 001. I can’t stand PODs or ships carrying their pilots’ name and believe such individuals to be of a lazy disposition, or perhaps they have more important activities to contend with.
There are many ways of creating interesting names for your ships. B13 prefers to name his killing machines with scary little pictures such as ‘;..;’ I find these names enchanting and I’ve been guilty of naming a few ships similarly.
Typically I allocate a descriptive name to a ship inspired by the legend of the Earthly pirates that used to roam the ancient seas millennia ago. Whilst consulting various available media such as the Encyclopedia Galactica(www) I found a useful site which will generate various names for your spaceship. The link can be found below.
Happy hunting…
Related Links
Pirate Ship Name Generator
“She Kanny Take Any More Cap'n…”
Overheating is the new black. If you are unable to overheat you are missing out on expensive repair bills and the endless replacement of Nanite Repair Paste. I regularly overheat my modules, sometimes to distracted destruction.
The arrangement of modules upon the ship helps contain heat damage produced when a module is overloaded. It’s desirable to have passive modules racked adjacent to the overheating module(s). Positioning the modules such helps dissipate the heat and reduces the instances of damage caused by overheating. The overheating of the primary also heats up the passive module(s) and can cause damage, but some modules are more efficient at venting heat and it is wise to account for this whenever fitting ships.
Excursions into w-space will help support the funding of a Tech 3 cruiser as well as supply many of the vital components. The specifications of this ship are to include the Supplemental Coolant Injector which will permit extended overheating of on-board modules. I realise that heat damage will still present itself, therefore I intend to maximise through training; the specific bonuses before launch. With additional excursions and a new training pattern I intend to construct and competently operate this vessel but, beyond the deployment of the w-space POS, this is my mission post POS deployment.
Holy POS!
Mission: To successfully deploy a POS in w-space
Location: Unknown
Phase one of the w-POS is complete. At present there are 3 POS of different configurations online within w-space with only the latest being maintained. All of them are to be found on Singularity as tests for the final phase of the mission. B13 and I have been living within various versions of these POS’s for the past three weeks refining the deployment process.
There were concerns that additional manpower was required to achieve our mission but in practice we found that deployment was (relatively) straight forward. Our POS specialist; EiD has contributed to the cause by supporting us with technical advice regarding arrangement of the POS systems and what supplies are needed to maintain the POS indefinitely.
The purpose of this mission is to seek out new life forms and new civ…er Ahem. The purpose of this mission is to farm the local Sleeper sites and manufacture Tech 2 and Tech 3 components for the building and sale of various modules and subsystems as well as construct our own Strategic Cruisers. The POS also provides an excellent staging area for excursions into the local populace wherever an exit wormhole may develop.
At the time of this report the third POS is undergoing reconfiguration. Initially we decided that only shield hardeners would be necessary but we have since agreed that it is wiser to support the POS with some form of defence beyond the passive nature of the POS shield. As the state of the wormholes fluctuate it is necessary for my ALT to remain within the POS shield to ensure that there is always a POD within the realm ready to scan an exit if required.
Logistically, operating in w-space is difficult. As wormholes are inherently unstable and an exit is not guaranteed, the tonnage of fuel necessary to maintain the POS shielding must be taken into w-space in bulk and at the earliest opportunity. At present we have enough fuel stored to last a desirable two months.
The state of this w-space is rich as it points from a 0.5 secure system. So far we have uncovered a constant stream of asteroid belts, complexes and gas clouds and we have been un-molested during our time there. This will obviously change when the POS goes live within New Eden itself. Unfortunately the gas clouds are not suitable for booster manufacture but with the wormholes appearing regularly we may yet be able to find an exit into a system which harbours the correct type.
The final stages of the mission are to take place over the next few weeks where B13 and I will attempt to use what we have learnt to successfully deploy a POS within New Edens’ w-space. The mission carries huge risks but, if you’ve ever been into a wormhole you must agree that the rewards are mountainous.
It’s a very exciting period for us both and we intend to maximise on our position when it occurs to bolster our own notoriety and wallets. To good health…
