Welcome to my blog, thanks for dropping by   The intention being to keep a track of my exploits as a pirate in  the world of EVE Online.  If you’re not familiar with EVE (although probably are if reading this – you may have just been one of my recent victims OR exacted your revenge upon me) then I’ll paste a little bit of the back story below, along with a link to the main site.

For ease, I’ve split the blog into 3 main parts/catagories.  These are;  Piracy, Fiction/Storyline and General.

Piracy -  As the name suggests will contain events and happenings of my time in the online world.  Be sure to have a look here for the latest exploits, and probably a giggle too! :p

Fiction/Storyline -Posts here are created from my strange mind and may have some slight relatation to events and myself in EVE, or just a more general “back-story” to my character and online persona.

General – Uncatagorised ramblings (and sometimes ranting).

Ok, so a little about me in the form of a question/answer session is probably the best:

 

Q: Why EVE?

A: It was actually the first MMO I stumbled across, after being told about it by a friend so I decided to give it a try.  I liked the freedom that it gave to do as you wished, there were no massive imposed limits or restrictions.  It’s been compared to a sandbox VS themepark, and it’s certainly not a themepark where you start at the start and work your way through.  There is no “end game” in EVE – and that’s what I love about it.

 

Q: Have you always been a pirate?

A: Yes, aside from my initial character that I started with in my newbie 2 week trial.  After getting to grips with the basics, Alia was born and my life of piracy started.

 

Q: Why a pirate, why piracy?

A: I’ve always had a thing about pirates, maybe even an obession you could say lol.  It’s nothing like the old days of swashbuckling at sea, but it does have a sense of adventure about it and a freedom to act, or not act.  There are no set rules to live by as such (they’re more like guidelines – sorry couldn’t resist that one) and it gives a sense of liberation without any confines of morailty, duty and so on.  I’ve also liked the idea of piracy itself for quite some time, earning an income, albeit in an alternative manner.

 

Q: Do pirates have more fun?

A: I would have to say “absolutley yes”.  No corp operations, no corp mining, no corp blah blah.  Diplomacy isn’t an issue, and neither is a war dec (what does it matter if you can be shot at anyway).  There’s also the thrill of the hunt, the chase and then the ensuing battle.  Will it be a kill, a ransom?  Will they bring in backup?  Will we even win? What loot will there be?

 

Q: Do you enjoy making people miserable or something?

A: No, not at all.  I do however enjoy the ranting that sometimes ensues after a target has been ransomed or popped – it’s just funny that people take it as a personal insult when it’s not intended to be, it’s just business  You’ll never see me flying around in a T2 uber pimped faction fitted ship, because the cost of losing it (which will happen) is far too expensive.  One way of earning a living is via missions and mining, another is through piracy and theft – it still involves effort and work, it’s just a different perspective.

 

Q: Do you think you’re brilliant, uber, untouchable?

A: No, far from it.  I’ve had my fair share of being on the receiving end and scuttling off with my tail between my legs.  I’m an older character, yes, but that doesn’t necessarily mean better.  There are many people that could out dps, out tank and out PvP me I’m sure but being a pirate I’m not looking for a fair fight or a challange – that would be silly.  The law of nature states “the path of least resistance” so I’m quite happy to follow that.  In translation, maximum profit, maximum enjoyment for minimum effort.

 

Q: Do you gloat about kills and so on?

A: I try not to, and keep a grounded approach.  Don’t get me wrong, when something works out and works out well making a nice profit or overcoming a tricky situation of course I’m happy about it and I want to tell people about it.  I don’t however rub someone’s nose in it, they’ve already suffered enough from the loss of their ship/pod/isk – which could of course probably have been prevented with proper precautions and due care.

 

Q: How did you “get into” piracy?

A: Some people drift there, others go because of friends, and others have always wanted to embrace that.  I was the latter.  I firstly did a bit of reading, gained information on the “how to” and then put it into practice in Empire space by flipping cans to gain some experience.  I’d stumbled across eve-pirate.com  and found an author there and dropped him an EvE mail, this was noneother than the famous Flashfresh.  I trained the skills needed to tackle, and flew with some pilots from Independence and furthered those skills.  After a while I did a bit of small gang flying with friends and random people, only to come full circle again.

 

Q: Why do you do it?

A: Because I enjoy the pirate “life style”.  I’m not in it for the kills, the glory, the money – no wait, yes the money and for the fun of it.  It’s something I personally enjoy doing.  If I wanted the kills, I’d be a merc.  If I wanted to be super rich, I’d be an industrialist or a scammer.  It’s the way I enjoy New Eden on a personal level (plus I’m obsessed with pirates, if you couldn’t tell :p).

 

Q: Is it easy?

A: Sometimes, sometimes not.  It depends on the luck of the draw and how attentive to the situation you are, but you learn that with experience and trial and error.

 

Q: Are pirates all friendly to each other?

A: Hell no.  Contrary to popular belief pirates fight each other, shoot each other and ransom each other.  Of course you don’t do that to your own gang or organisation, but just because you’re an outlaw/criminal doesn’t mean you’re safe from other ones.

 

Q: Why do you write/blog about it?

A: Firstly, I enjoy writing and experssing myself.  To re-tell an event which has happened in such a way as not to be a simple “report” involves some creative writing and additional imagination.  It’s something I enjoy, just like being a pirate in EVE.  Secondly, I think it offers some entertainment value to those reading it, some information into EVE and piracy for those thinking about it.  Lastly, to bring more people over to the “dark side” and enjoy themselves – many, many people say they want to, but never take the plunge.  Maybe a read of this blog might be the deciding factor causing them to lock, scramble and attack an unwhitting victim.  C’mon, you know you want to :p  (and don’t tell me you’ve _never_ thought about it).

 

Q: Can you relate to your character?

A: Certainly, and we share traits being one and the same person – just in different ways.  Alia is simply an “image” of myself, but in a different world, a different time and with different people.  I don’t take things that happen in-world/in-game personally in real life, because frankly that’s too closer bond than I’d like.  The way I think of it is “If I were in her (Alia’s) shoes that is how I would potentially be”.  I’ve also tried to make Alia more 3d, than a 2d cardboard cut-out and give her a personality to “bring her to life” and create and integrate her into the world of EVE and New Eden.  The game world is made up of people, their actions and their personalities – this is no different.  Why not be part of it, than an outsider on the sidelines?

 

Q: Are you insane?

A: Hmmmm, probably.  All pirates are slightly mad and eccentric, at the very least quirky.

 

Q: Do you have a life outside EVE?

A: LOL yes, although I’m totally obsessed with it, always have been and probably will be for the foreseeable future.  I have a full time job and a family which means my time can be limited, but I try to be around as much as possible – I’m always looking for the next roam and the next ransom

 

Comments are now enabled for this page, feel free to comment should you so wish.  I’ve had them disabled before (I’m a control freak – deal with it :p) but always have comments enabled on the posts.  However, being of a curious and inquisitive nature I’m interested into what people might ask/think.  So ask/comment away….

 

Now onto the EVE backstory;

EVE takes place in a cluster of stars far from mankind’s original habitat, planet Earth. How far away, and whether or not that cradle of civilization still exists, is a mystery. Humans arrived through a natural wormhole and, gazing up upon an alien sky they had never seen, were completely unable to determine where this new world was located. From the New Eden solar system, where the gate of EVE once led to the old world, humans expanded in all directions at a furious pace, exploring and colonizing rapidly.

Then, unexpectedly and seemingly unprovoked, the EVE gate collapsed in an apocalyptic catastrophe of a scale never before witnessed by the human race, ruining the New Eden system in the process. Thousands of small colonies were left in complete isolation to fend for themselves, cut off from the old world. For millennia they endured, clinging to the brink of extinction, and only a handful managed to survive.

Of those that lasted, five were to rise up and become the major empires that, between them, hold the balance of power in the world of EVE. Today, they are known as the Amarr Empire, the Gallente Federation, the Caldari State, the Minmatar Republic, and the Jovian Empire. Additionally, the world is full of several small, independent factions and states.

For more than a century, the five empires have lived together in relative peace. They’ve continually strived to maintain this peace, as each faction realizes only too well the grave consequences of a massive inter-stellar war. Recent technological breakthroughs in FTL travel, and the ensuing increase in space travelers, have shaken, but not broken, the fragile peace… at least not yet.

You can find EVE Online here (opens in a pop-up)