Being Knee Anderthal

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Incursion 1.5 Thoughts

I always find it amusing that CCP brags about their sandbox environment where one can do anything they like, yet they are constantly releasing patches that push forth an effort to influence what people should be doing.

Today's offering makes Highsec missioning more available and lucrative than ever before. My corpmates are saying that it's ridiculously easy to get to the reputation level needed for level 4 missions. I'll be testing out that theory in Serpentis space, flying a dirt-cheap Rifter and flying in the face of the resident hooligans who are claiming Serpentis space for themselves in the wake of TEST's failed effort to drive them out.

Sunday, May 1, 2011

The Best-Laid Plans...

It feels like things have stagnated a bit. There was a large call about a month ago to move our base of operations right next to Serpentis NPC space so we can take over the area and run Archangels missions, turning in the loyalty points for shiny faction ships. So far that plan hasn't gone well. After we moved our staging system I was expecting to see lots of planned fleet ops to roam around the area and catch any enemy stragglers who happen to be hanging around. That hasn't happened very much. In fact the inhabitants seem to be holding on to the neutral space quite well, which does not bode well for our potential mission runners, myself included. There are the likes of Interceptors, Instacanes, and even a Carrier camping the stations. And like the 0rphanage, they hide in their hole anytime a fleet shows up.

The problem is that we are not displaying our show of force like we did in the siege of 6VDT. An ideal alliance would have ships in each of the seven NPC systems, even some with cynos fitted so that they can hotdrop on a carrier who tries to take a potshot at our fleet and think they can hold on to their tank for a minute while waiting to de-agress.

Instead what does it feel like we've been doing? Shooting a tower here, saving a tower there. Not much else. On the forums there's a general feeling of a lack of direction. I tend to agree with that sentiment. I have my own plans for improving things but I can't do it alone. In the meantime I'm focusing on a little bit of liquidation. Not because I'm wanting to move anywhere else, but to be ready to do so in case the situation with the alliance changes.

Monday, April 18, 2011

Tech II Guns Take Forever

Medium Artillery Specialization is finished. Sharpshooter V is required for Large Artillery Specialization, as is Large Projectile V. In total about 24 days of training for those two skills alone. So much for April.

The good news is that the guns will see plenty of use.

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Greeting The 0rphanage

Two weeks ago, TEST decided it was fed up with constant wardecs by The 0rphanage. In true newbie-loving fashion, we stormed Jita 4-4 with one hundred Rifters. This was the result. We exploded our ships hilariously and did 200 million in damage compared to 30 million in losses. 0rphanage retracted their wardec a few days later.

Three days ago, they declared war again. We decided to pay them another visit, and this time we were upping the ante. I had to join in the hilarity.

We assembled a fleet of Stabbers and Thoraxes. Able to fly both, I chose a Thorax for its greater DPS. Our scout surveyed the field and out of 12 or so hostiles, we decided the Legion was the juiciest target. We sent in bait. The Legion aggressed. Within seconds we pounced and decimated it. This time the damage was 460 million.

The ambush scared the rest of 0rphanage into the station. We regrouped at our launching station. They came out and camped it. We decided to engage them anyway. This time the juicy targets were gone but we still took out a Harbinger, another Harbinger, and a Drake. We lost most of our ships in the second engagement, but totaling up the encounter shows we did a total of 650 million in damage with a 463 million loss. This included our scout and bait ships. The cruisers were provided to us by the FC, cheaply fit, and fully insured. By blowing them up, we were paid to participate. It was a pleasure.

Friday, March 25, 2011

What's New?

   Skill Training: I've completed Minmatar Frigate V and can now fly Assault Ships, Interceptors, Cov Ops, and EWar vessels ... though who would want to fly a Hyena anyway? The WoW Rogue player in me loves Cov Ops. I have a lot of missile skills to train before I can fly a Stealth Bomber effectively, so right now I'm just having fun scouting around in a Cheetah.

   The next step is the long, arduous, but necessary path to Tech II guns. Projectiles are the flavor of the month and my Gunnery has been neglected for far too long.

   Please support the relief efforts in Japan. So far I have donated 12 PLEX to CCP's campaign for good. I encourage everyone else to participate if they can.

   I should have an interesting Op to talk about tomorrow.

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Neural Remap

   Everything was prepared ahead of time. It was just a matter of throwing the switch.

   For the past seven months, Knee's learning plan had been focused entirely in support and infrastructure. All the non-combat tools that he would need to be a better combat pilot. Sounds contradictory, but take into consideration that a fighter pilot needs more than guns. He needs engines, shields, armor, and even a few tricks up his sleeve. Some of those tricks include overheating modules, jury rigging, electronic warfare, and astrometrics. Knee knew them all. He was ready.

   He sat calmly in Medical while the doctor's aides busied themselves around him. Some were taking scans, others were hooking up equipment, and still others were running calculations. Neural remaps were not everyday procedures. Official regulations limited their use to once a standard year, though occasional grants by special request were possible. Knee was well-trained in Science but still did not understand the technology behind changing the brain to influence a person's mental capacity. Something about optimizing neural pathways. The scientists explained it best as "flashing" the brain the same way a data storage chip is written. Both are electrical systems, after all. When you abstract it to that level, it simply becomes a matter of circuit design. Knee was comfortable enough with the concept of implants supporting the brain's functions, but rewiring the brain itself was beyond his comprehension. He trusted the people around him.

   When the aides confirmed everything was ready, the attention turned to Knee. He was focused, almost trancelike, on completing the final skill in his set, drawing in data from the invisible voice in his head. Finally he opened his eyes and Aura, connected to his implants, proudly announced "Skill training completed." He looked at the head doctor and nodded. One of the nurses applied a quick sedative and the experts went to work.

   Within moments, it was finished. They removed the sedation and Knee regained consciousness. As he regained his bearings he could feel the eerie effects of the procedure. His willpower was higher than ever before - he knew no fear. His perception was nearly off the charts. He was able to predict the aides' actions and movements almost to the point of seeing into the future. He reveled in the feeling. He felt superhuman. He felt like a Capsuleer.

Monday, February 28, 2011

EVE Blog Banter #25: Subtracting Sovereignty

Welcome to the twenty-fifth 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 or so 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 for other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

This month's topic comes to us from @Tetraetc - "Tetra's EVE Blog" - who asks: "Have Alliances and the sovereignty system limited the amount of PVP and RP potential in Null sec? Imagine a Null Sec where anyone could build outposts wherever. Would the reduction of the alliance game mechanic, and the removal of the sovereignty game mechanics (or the modifcation of it from Alliance level to Corp level for that matter) force more PVP into Null sec, or would giant power blocs like the NC still form themselves?"

I believe there is a large hurdle for alliances to leap over in order to get into capturing sovereignty. Namely, playing the reinforcement game. Getting a fleet together is simple. Getting a fleet together that has the firepower and patience to reinforce a tower? Quite a significant commitment. Getting that fleet together three times in a row at different times on different days? A heroic effort.

For those who are ignorant of the current mechanics, here's a quick explanation. Unclaimed space is claimed with a Territorial Claim Unit (TCU). When that goes online, the system is yours and you can start placing buildings - Infrastructure Hubs (IHUBs) and Stations. All three of these building types are invulnerable as long as you hold uncontested sovereignty.

To take someone else's sovereignty, you have to plant Sovereignty Blockade Units (SBUs) at over 50% of the system's gates. At that point the IHUB and Station become vulnerable. Taking them down requires shooting them and waiting out the reinforcement timers. When those buildings are down, the enemy TCU is vulnerable. Destroy it and the system returns to a neutral state, ready to be claimed by its conquerors.

So what happens when you start tearing that system apart, piece by piece? First of all, the reinforcement timers. If reinforcement did not exist, an enemy fleet could storm a system and capture it within half a day. SBU's take 3 hours to come online, and TCU's take 8. In the middle of that is the timeframe for the IHUB to be destroyed and the Station to be conquered. A blob of supercaps would make it easy. This change alone can make a huge upset in sovereignty holdings, as a large alliance that is slow to react can lose systems literally overnight. For working types like myself, I'm away from EVE for 16 hours in a row every day when considering work and sleep. A successful alliance defense would require round-the-clock guard shifts across all timezones.

If taking down the IHUB and Station was not required, then the attack can be reduced to a single player in an Industrial carrying the necessary SBU's and TCU, plus a small gang to destroy the enemy TCU.

These changes would force such delicate instability that maintaining any amount of territorial claim would require eyes everywhere at all times and a reactionary force of minutemen available to repel any attack within a matter of hours. The week-long round-the-clock siege of 6VDT-H performed by my own alliance just a few weeks ago would be reduced to a lazy Saturday's activity. That hard work could be undermined the very next day. Establishing a flourishing market and profitable IHUBs would be next to impossible.

Breaking down sovereignty from alliance level to corp level would surely make things more granular, but it could also splinter the effectiveness of an alliance. Each corp would have its own staging systems and the coordination between corps could easily fall apart.

So the way I see it, removing some of the sovereignty barriers would definitely cause more PvP simply by making it easier for one group to force another group's hand. But make it too easy and the ability to change sovereignty becomes trivial with a blob force, and impossible to maintain when the opposing blob force shows up, all the while draining all the fun away from building a productive home.

So what happens when sovereignty disappears or it becomes utterly pointless? Then nullsec simply becomes lowsec without the GCC. Anarchy. A pirate's dream. All PVP all the time. Alliances degenerate into nomadic blobs or bubbly gatecamps. Lowsec becomes the carebears risking a shot at making more money versus the solo PvPers hellbent on stopping them. Meanwhile supercapital ships have nowhere to hide, and the prices of any kind of nullsec equipment skyrocket. Well, at least it wouldn't be safer than highsec.

Other responses to EVE Blog Banter #25: