First taste of PvP and more Starmade

I managed to go out with a mate and lose a few frigates over last couple weeks. So far I've learnt:

• Finding shit worth engaging with two frigates is rare...
• Hookbills hurt
• Insta-locking Curses gatecamping with logi hurt
• 90% of fights are over before I can realise what I fucked up

Hunted an un-tanked Venture through a few belts but he got away in 1/2 armour after we couldn't lock him down quick enough. Because frigate PvP is over so quickly it's extremely hard to get everything on and overheated, remember to keep range, pulsing MWD, being aware of where the targets are, maintaining range, etc, etc, etc. Inevitably at least one of those things gets forgotten every time I engage, but hey: that's what losing X number of Meta 3 T1 frigates is all about, right?

Really need to keep my friend's interest in the game because going round solo sucks donkey dick. Switching to RvB sooner rather than later might help. Just means getting my arse into gear and actually getting onto EVE.

I must also make time to do my second video on Ninja Salvaging. I think that will be this weekend's task.

I'm still being distracted by Starmade, but at least I'm channelling it into EVE-related builds. So far I've finished exterior hulls for an Armageddon, and a Drake. A Tempest is most likely on the cards next.


Full post and Imgur album of the builds and others over at my general gaming blog

Distractions

 In other news...

I've been meaning to go out into low-sec with 10-15 frigates and lose them all to get an introduction to PvP. Unfortunately, I've become rather preoccupied by Starmade. It's a fantastic little game that's taken inspiration from Minecraft - another game which consumed a LOT of my time.

It's currently in alpha, and it is VERY alpha. Bugs galore, dodgy AI, the works. BUT, it's also fantastic fun for anyone with a creative itch. Basically, you build your spaceship out of block ala Minecraft, then put thrusters, shields, power and weapons on it, and go blow the shit out of something.

There's a crafting component to the game, factions, and you can visit "disc-world" planets as if it was Minecraft. You can even fly into the sun.

Because of balance issues, getting to what currently passes for "end-game" content is faaaaar too easy. If you want to play it now, I'd recommend playing it as if it were Creative Mode Minecraft - use Dev commands for infinite resources. Then you can make stuff like this:

This guy's stuff is absolutely bonkers.

I'm currently working on an Armageddon/Bhaalgorn. Here's a WIP shot of it (clicky to enlargen):

That's the basework done in brown hull from a couple google'd shots of a 'geddon and a lot of Minecraft experience. From scratch, and no planning/3rd parties programs used. Needs a lot of detail work done and some functionality added but it's pretty much the reason why I've missed a lot of EVE recently. Posting it here because it's a 'geddon haha.

There's images floating around of other EVE ships that people have made. I've seen Rifters, an Imicus(?), and then there's this which I swear must be imported from a 3-D model or planned out using a "voxelator" seeing as none of the wedge or corner pieces have been used. Nonetheless - gobsmackingly gorgeous

The Second-Oldest Profession

Scamming

It's the sole reason for EVE Online’s existence some might say… Indeed, the act of scamming in EVE is as old as the game itself. CCP are famous for promoting this type of “emergent gameplay”. For newer players though, lack of knowledge about game mechanics can mean a ruined new-player-experience and a loss of interest in the game.

All new players should know the first rule of EVE:
Here’s a ship, Fuck you.
Never fly what you can’t afford to lose.

Words to live by, but it’s astonishing how many people voluntarily ignore this rule. There’s a point where you get blasé about reading “I quit” forum threads because some carebear their shiny officer-fit mission runner or jump freighter popped by ebil piwates.

What only some EVE websites will tell you is that there is a second rule to EVE:
Everybody Lies.

Or, alternatively:
Don’t trust anybody.
 
Or
If it’s too good to be true, it’s probably a scam.
 
Yeah, OK, I basically repeated myself three times but still... I mentioned in my introductory post about a friend that “wanted a game I can be a dick in”. This is reflective of a great many players in EVE but particularly those who scam. People scam because in-game anonymity segues so easily into Schadenfreude, tears, and sociopathic fantasies. 

I’ve summarised the different types of scams, how they’re conducted and how to spot them on this dedicated blog page:

Spotting a Scam - What to look for
I think I’d be happy if even one noob reads it and as a result avoids getting scammed.