The Role Playing Background Of My Low Sec Life

"The Vherokior tribe is perhaps the least troubled of the Minmatar tribes, with little aspirations for dominance, content to live on the fringe. Most Vherokiors are shop-keepers or small scale businessmen, seldom venturing into the big boy's league."

In-game description of the Vherokior Tribe

I've discussed living in low sec a lot over the past couple of years.  But I don't think I've explained the role playing aspect of living in low.  Role playing?  I know, I know.  A lot of people much wiser than I have come out and stated that EVE Online is not a role playing game.  Some even wish to remove as many RPG elements out of the game as possible.  But until they succeed, I'll go ahead and continue with my light version of RP.



Let's start with my characters.  Both of them are from the Vherokior tribe.  Why not go for variety?  Because when I read the description so many years ago, I thought the description was perfect for the way I wanted to play.

"Originally nomads in Matar's vast and inhospitable desert regions, the Vherokior are among the most diverse individuals of the Republic. They can be found in professions ranging from doctors to mystics, scholars to merchants. Their quiet work ethic and widespread family clans allow them unlimited social mobility in the Republic, with access to both the best and worst that society has to offer. While politically underrepresented in the Republic, the Vherokior are more than capable of influencing policy, and have no qualms with using that influence to benefit a relative or associate. The practice is common in the private sector as well, where Vherokior clan-run businesses thrive by avoiding the bureaucratic red tape of official channels."

My combat/exploration character, Rosewalker, is a mystic, although I can't find that in his description.  While I screwed up by not getting enough tattoos, I think the description fits.

"Vherokiors have always seemed strange to the other Minmatar tribes, doubly so when it comes to those with mystical inclinations. Vherokior mystics are both revered and feared by the Minmatar. The ancient Voluval ritual, where the soul and karma of the person is revealed through the unexplained emergence of a body tattoo on the recipient, was created by Vherokior mystics, and its secrets are closely guarded."

Now, if low sec carebear doesn't seem strange to people, I don't know what else would. 

My CEO/industry/leadership character, Wandering Rose, is a female drifter.  The racial traits explain why the CEO of my corporation is a woman.

"Vherokior females are famous for their shrewd business acumen. They tend to possess precisely the right mixture of intelligence and intuition to excel in both commerce and industry. Many are chosen to operate businesses run by the family clan, though under the watchful eye of the clan matriarch." 

Wandering Rose is often found roaming around in a Prowler, either delivering cargo or with a Prowler packaged up in the cargo hold prospecting for a good ore site.  She has small stashes of ships scattered around just in case she feels the need go off and mine and doesn't want to go back for the portable mining ship.  That style of play goes well with the description of the Drifter.

"Drawing inspiration from their nomadic ancestry, wanderlust runs strong with many Vherokiors. While many curb their thirst for adventure, there are those who simply cannot settle down in one place for long. Never at rest, they will always be lured by the horizon, as there are places to see and riches to be discovered."

Okay, I'm not quite that adventurous, as I've mainly stayed in the Minmatar Republic or the nearby Ammatar region of Derelik.  But when Rubicon launched, I traveled to Domain for a few weeks chasing the riches of Sisters of EVE loyalty points.  And until the changes were made to datacores making datacore farming less lucrative, both my characters had a 90-jump route to visit their R&D agents.

Since my little corp is part of Wandering Rose's back story, I should include the description in this post.  I've gotten waves in local and nice comments for it.

"The Khumaak Flying Circus is named in honor of Drupar Maak, the slave who killed Arkon Ardishapur, the royal heir to the Ardishapur family, on Starkman Prime and began the great slave rebellion that eventually led to the formation of the Minmatar Republic. Drupar, who served as Arkon’s personal secretary, killed the Amarrian royal heir with his own ceremonial scepter, called a Khuumak, when Arkon was on the verge of discovering that Drupar was a ringleader of a planned revolt. In honor of Drupar, the slaves began arming themselves with imitation khuumaks, calling them khumaaks. It is the makeshift weapon of the slaves, not the sacred symbol of their Amarrian masters, which the corporation is named after.

"Another reason for honoring Drupar Maak is that the Vherokior tribe is an offshoot of the Starkmanir tribe. Arkon’s successor Idonis ordered the extermination of the Starkmanir in retribution for his father’s death, but a few years ago New Eden learned he had failed. The name 'Khumaak' is a reminder of when the Starkmanir led the revolt and not what our cousins turned into during their escape from the Ardishapur family’s vengeance.

"Currently the Khumaak Flying Circus is establishing relationships in the low security areas of the Minmatar Republic and can offer perfect refining of scrap metal as well as minerals found in Empire space to its members in the more advanced Thukker Tribe stations as well as the outposts of several Minmatar corporations.  Khumaak Flying Circus also offers access to jump clones at the facilities in Eifyr and Co. stations."

I'll have to change that last paragraph once the refining changes hit this summer.  But the reference to Eifyr and Co. is because when I began playing EVE that a character's standings with the various NPC corporations was visible to everyone.  I decided that since the Vherokior had access to the "worst" society had to offer, that I would throw in a close relationship with a corporation rumored to have some unsavory connections.

"Founded shortly after the Minmatar Republic’s establishment by the renowned, yet enigmatic, biochemist Kolvil Eifyr, the Eifyr and Co. corporation swiftly became a potent force in the biochemical and cyber-implant industries. Backed by investment from the shrewd leaders of the Krusual Tribe and steered by Eifyr, the corporation remains a lean, relatively small, but highly efficient powerhouse. However, its emphasis on secrecy and rumored connections to the Minmatar underworld have fueled speculation as to how the company really makes its money. The most persistent rumors and occasional accusations have centered on allegations of illegal booster manufacturing and secret contracts with the Serpentis Corporation. Whatever the truth may be, none of the investigations mounted against Eifyr and Co. have ever uncovered concrete evidence of wrong-doing, and no prosecution has been attempted to date."

With that description, if I were aiding Eifyr I'd probably fly blockade runners to move illegal products around covertly.  Did I mention that both characters can fly both blockade runners and covert ops frigates?  I like cloaky ships so having a role play reason is rather nice.  Of course, I've never transported any illegal boosters.  Nope.  Not me.

I have to admit I haven't stayed totally true to my characters' ancestry, because I've thrown in some flavor of the Retailers into my play.

"Walk into any dingy little eatery in Minmatar space and odds are it's owned and operated by a Vherokior. The same goes for any other small business establishment in the Republic. The Vherokior are notorious peddlers, dating back to their caravan days. They usually run a family business and are seldom inclined to create big corporations."

This is my guide for my corporation.  A small, family affair selling small items like projectiles, missiles, nanite repair paste and liquid ozone.  Well, I guess liquid ozone isn't really small, but the rest of the items I sell are.

Some may wonder why I sell my products in a low sec market.  I have the out-of-character reasons that 1) I'd like to help build up low sec, even if just a bit, and 2) Sugar Kyle has a market set up in Bosena, Molden Heath.  Since I like her Cult of Reasonable Prices, I feel like I can make a contribution to making at least one part of low sec more livable.  Bosena, from a role-play perspective, is perfect.  One jump away from the Vherokior home system of Teonusude, its location at the edge of low security space fits the description of the Vherokior available in-game that describes the members of the tribe "content to live on the fringe."  Of course, a lot of people will claim that living in low sec is living on the fringe anyway.

A lot of people come into EVE and just want to blow up spaceships.  Others like to build things.  That's okay, but I've found that the rich body of lore in EVE Online lends itself to providing a framework for the way I play EVE.  Now I just need to fit the upcoming industry changes into the story I've written over the close to 5 years I've played this game.  But that's all part of the fun.