Watching Fanfest After All

I'm taking Friday off to watch Fanfest.  And why not?  I haven't taken a day off all year, not even for the great snowstorm of 2011.  I'm not sure if I want to get the HD feed or not.  I'm still torn between just laying on the couch to watch or running a mining op and watching on the laptop.

So what finally made me decide to take the day off?  The Pain vs Brain chessboxing match.  The pre-match video is pretty good and I've got to see how it turns out.  Besides, only EVE TV would show a chessboxing match immediately following a one hour economics lecture.  And I really want to see that one too.  With so much goodness on Friday, I just couldn't resist.

Hammer And Anvil

I don't spend all of my time in Eve Online figuring out ways to build tech 2 ships.  Sometimes I run level 4 missions.  I especially like the rogue drone missions because they give out so many minerals I need to make tech 2 ships.

When I search the Internet looking for fits for my Maelstrom, auto-cannon fits without propulsion mods seem really popular.  But since I always dual-box PvE situations in Eve, I'm developing another tactical doctrine for running level 4 missions.  The concept involves fitting out a battleship (currently a Maelstrom) with artillery because I like to reach out to 90 klicks and hit other ships.  Of course, artillery fit battleships are vulnerable to fast ships like frigates and destroyers.  That's where my second ship, and auto-cannon fit Hurricane comes in.  If a small ship like a frigate or cruiser is able to survive traversing the Maelstrom's kill zone, the Hurricane is usually able to take out the pesky ships rather rapidly.

This tactic works really well on missions when the ships land right next to frigates fit with webbers and scrams.  The Maelstrom enters the deadspace area, draws all the aggro, and then the Hurricane, combined with the gang's ten drones, makes short work of the offending rats.  This tactic also frees up the Maelstrom's guns to take out more distant targets (like stasis towers) that pose a longer term threat to the successful completion of the mission.

I've been working on the tactic because this weekend Wandering Rose, my industrial pilot who also pilots my battlecruisers, will finish up learning Medium Autocannon Specialization to 3 and I'll be able to outfit the Hurricane with tech 2 guns.  At the same time, I need to finally decide which tech 2 guns to buy for my Maelstrom since Rosewalker can now use large tech 2 autocannons and artillery.  With the success of these tactics I'm leaning toward fitting artillery and then purchasing autocannons later on to experiment with.

I know that most people find missions boring.  But between spending a lot of time involved in industrial activities and playing RIFT, I'm not burned out doing them and actually look forward to doing missions like The Blockade and can't wait to finally get to do a level 4 version of Worlds Collide.  Besides that, I get to play around with gang compositions trying to figure out how ships fit together best.  Figuring stuff out is always fun.

Keep My Game Out Of The Real World

Sometimes my thought process is a little, to put it kindly, out of the box.  But I was taken aback when during the coverage of the Libya airstrikes yesterday that the vision of Eve Online's Tyrannis trailer flashed through my mind with President Obama's voice reading the lines.  And then I thought about things for a few minutes and then thought about how some of the more undesirable things in Eve are making their way to the front pages of the news.  A scary thought as New Eden is a dark and dangerous place.  Keeping these things out of the real world is what our politicians and leaders are supposed to do.  Here are some of the issues I wish I were not seeing:

A growing money supply and inflation - As players paying attention to the Eve economy can tell you, New Eden is facing inflationary pressures caused by the use of bots that make money through collecting bounties on pirates.  In the real world, the U.S. Federal Reserve is engaged in measures like QE2 which involves buying up U.S. Federal debt.  Many are concerned this growth in the money supply will lead to inflation, even possibly hyper-inflation.  Or, to but it another way, "I can't eat an iPad."

Pirates - Really?  Piracy is an accepted play-style in Eve Online, but something that was wiped out in the 1700s, right?  Maybe in the Caribbean, but not off the Horn of Africa.  Piracy is alive and well on the high seas in the 21st century.  When I start reading articles on how to avoid pirates that could apply to traveling in low-security space, I really start to wonder what is going on in the world.

Mercenaries - I love reading the stories about Mercenary Coalition's The North Reloaded campaign and the Noir. Mercenary Group's Declarations of War podcast, but that doesn't mean I like to see the proliferation of mercs in the real world.  But that is exactly what I see.  The latest instance is in Libya, where Moammar Gadhafi was on the verge of losing the country until mercenaries helped turn the tables on the rebels.  In New Eden, the Drone Russian Forces hired Pandemic Legion to stave off a Northern Coalition attack.  Are we witnessing the same sort of thing in North Africa today?

The trailer that started it all - Here is the trailer that inspired this post.  The words that brought our president to mind will follow beneath the window.

"I don't care for violence, but it is often a necessary evil.  I began this journey intending to create, not to destroy.  I looked to the stars and vowed that one day I would have a paradise to call my own.  To those who offered me their trust, I was a great benefactor.  Master of wealth and prosperity...

"But the spread of influence takes an iron will.  Your interests might align with some, and with others, collide with the force of suns.  You are much more powerful than you think.  Creation is so precious, and greed so destructive.  Your choice will make a difference."

Perhaps CCP, in its effort to make the ultimate science-fiction simulator, has created a world so like the real one that these types of comparisons are inevitable.  But the real world is not a video game, so forgive me if I expect our leaders to not allow some of the darkness that exists in New Eden to walk the face of the Earth.

Operation Smile: Perpetuum Jazzile's Africa

Every so often whenever my computer updates, the default sound device gets changed from my external speakers to my head set.  That is annoying when playing RIFT because, unlike Eve Online, RIFT has in-game sound.  Wearing a headset for hours is okay as part of a fleet, but when just running around RIFT, a headset sucks is sub-optimal.  But I've come up with a sound track to use while adjusting my sound to the proper levels and devices.  Perpetuum Jazzile's version of Toto's Africa.  I first heard about the Slovenian choir while listening to Eve Radio and while not really MMO-related, the video makes me smile.

Rift Patches March 17-18: Patch 1.02 and Hotfix 8

NOTE: This article is about RIFT Patch 1.02, not Patch 1.2.  I regret the error in the original title.

One problem that has plagued the early days of RIFT has been account hacking.  Trion came out with Patch 1.02 Thursday that introduced the Coin Lock system to help prevent hackers from stripping players' accounts.  But apparently a big gaping hole existed in the system that was closed with Hotfix #8.  So hopefully this major issue will at least, if not halt, at least subside.

But the developers have added and fixed more than the account security systems.  Here are the details of the last two days code changes:

Rift 1.02 – 3/17/11

COINLOCK FEATURE — Account Security

• If your account is logged in from a significantly different location, your characters will be ‘Coin Locked’ until an additional ownership verification is made.
• A Coin Locked account will receive an e-mail to their registered account address containing a code to enter in-game to unlock the account.

• A Coin Locked icon will appear on the bottom center of your screen if your account is in this state.
• While you are Coin Locked, characters on your account cannot:
  • – Access the Auction House.
  • – Send Mail (can still receive and view mail or remove items).
  • – Sell to vendors.
  • – Salvage, Runebreak, or destroy items.
  • – Trade.
  • – You can continue to play and gain coin and items, but cannot get rid of them.
• If you are Coin Locked, click on the Coin Lock icon and enter the code found in your e-mail from Trion.
• You can also have Coin Lock emails re-sent to your email address by clicking the button on the Coin Lock interface.
• Once you have verified ownership from a new location, that location is whitelisted for future account access.
• If you cannot access your email or are otherwise unable to change your Coin Locked status, contact Customer Service.

MAIL SPAM FILTERING

• Reporting mail as Spam now works a lot more like the chat and /tell spam system.
• Sending mail that the game filter recognizes as spam results in an additional coin charge.
• Mail you receive that has been flagged as spam will go to the Spam tab of your mailbox UI.

GENERAL

• Made a number of changes to how NPCs react to higher level characters:
  • – Characters under the effect of Exposed no longer have an additional chance to be dismounted.
  • – Reduced the minimum aggro range of monsters significantly below a character’s level.
  • – Increased the rate at which aggro range reduces as a character’s level increases relative to a mob.
• Fixed Forest Disruptor companion so his footsteps are not as loud as a full-size Treant.

ZONES

• Runic Descent: Expert: Corrected an issue where this instance could end with players still inside.
• As a result of the above change, the Captured Soul NPC will be re-enabled after this update.
• Moonshade Highlands: Rational Ward: Fixed issues with quest not updating.

RAIDS

• Greenscale’s Blight: Ongoing tuning for Duke Letareus, Infiltrator Johlen, Oracle Aleria, and Prince Hylas.
• Greenscale’s Blight: Prince Hylas is immune to player abilities that reduce healing taken.
• Greenscale’s Blight: Fixed an issue that could cause Greenscale’s protective Life Aura to occasionally not spawn.
• Akala: Reduced health of Stone Wardens in the Akala outdoor raid to make the first phase possible with 10 players.
• Akala: Akala’s Aegis of Stone and Gift of Laethys buffs can no longer be purged.

Hotfix #8 – 3/18/11

SECURITY

* Characters cannot be deleted while an account is Coin Locked.
* Characters cannot accept CoD mail if they are coin locked.
* Decreased the cooldown between requests to re-send Coin Lock key emails.
* Logging into an account with an existing connection will now force the connected account to fully exit the game.

GENERAL

* We now correctly refund your money in edge cases where you bid on an auction while it is no longer available.
* Being feared should no longer allow you to be scared right through solid objects or underground!
* Reduced Plaque of Achievement rewards from second-tier Expert Dungeon quests to 4 per completion.

ZONES
* Fixed a bug involving zone event Wardstone targets being destroyed by NPCs just before an event begins.
* The Battle for Port Scion, Whitefall Steppes: Using Riftstalker’s Flashback will cause you to drop the Sourcestone.
* The Battle for Port Scion: Stealth abilities no longer work when carrying Sourcestone.

Mike Azariah For CSM 6

The voting for Eve Online's Council of Stellar Management (sixth edition) ends on March 23rd.  While doing my due diligence before voting, I visited the CSM Vote Match website that allows people to match their views with the views of all the candidates on 40 outstanding issues in Eve Online today.  That visit confirmed something that I already pretty much wanted to do anyway.  So today The Nosy Gamer officially endorses Mike Azariah for CSM6.

Mike's answers lined up better with my views than any other candidate's.  While most other candidates apparently are chasing after the null and low-sec vote, Mike's views tend towards those who enjoy the high-sec lifestyle but aren't afraid (or at least are willing) to dip into low-sec every now and then.  At least that's where I place myself in the game.

But as many of the candidates have pointed out during the campaign, the members of the CSM are not game designers and really serve more as a sounding board for CCP than anything else.  While The Mittani attempts to form a power bloc of null sec representatives on the CSM, I think someone with a different perspective is needed.

Mike's perspective, as everyone who has read his blog knows, is different.  He has a role-players perspective on the game and yet is able to link the RP to the reality of how the game works for non-role players.  And he backs up the words on his blog with action.  With the coming of Incursions he formed the Gallente Hero channel as a way to combat the Sansha menace outside the traditional corporation/alliance structure.  Of course the logic was heavily influenced by role-play. 

But that is the kind of immersion that candidates like The Mittani say Eve needs more of.  But while some candidates are QQ'ing, Mike is going out now and grasping the opportunities that exist now.  And while I respect The Mittani not only for what he has accomplished in the game but for the thinking he has displayed in his Ten Ton Hammer columns, I don't think he goes far enough when he says he wants to bring CCP to our ideas. 

I want a candidate that is going to make CCP live up to its own stated ideas.  In Mike's writings I see the vision of Eve as the ultimate sci-fi simulator that CCP is striving for.  And in Mike's actions I see a player who grasps opportunities that others miss.  That is what Mike would bring to the Council for Stellar Management and hopefully some of that will rub off on others once he is elected.

Slacking In RIFT

As I listen to podcasts and read blogs, I can't help but feel I'm a slacker where RIFT is concerned.  Three weeks after the RIFT head start began my highest character is still a level 17 rogue.  True, I have a level 14 cleric and a level 11 warrior, but I just haven't felt the urge to really get on the leveling bandwagon.  Every time I hop into the game with the intention to level, I get distracted by a rift or, like last night, a boss shows up that I just have to run after and kill.

I think I really just need to concentrate on one aspect of the game because I don't have time to do everything.  The whole special currency for crafters looks really interesting and I should document that just to see how that works.  And then I still need to chase after rifts in order to unlock additional souls.  Both my rogue and cleric have 4 souls now and the game feels like I need to get the rest of the souls available before leaving Silverwood. 

Hmm ... see what I mean?  That's two things.  So maybe I concentrate on those and don't worry about leveling, even though the players who are leveling "slowly" are way ahead of me.  On the plus side, I definitely won't be one of those players complaining about the lack of content in a couple of months.  If I hit level 30 on any of my characters by Memorial Day, I'll be greatly surprised.

Making My Mastodon - Ship Components & Material Effic

Now that I have a Mastodon blueprint copy, I decided to make all the parts necessary to make a Mastodon.  However, I can't gather all the raw materials myself because many of them come from moons, so I'm going to try to purchase them on the market.  So what is on my shopping list?  Here are the components I plan to build.

Deflection Shield Emitter (375)
Electrolytic Capacitor (300)
Fernite Carbide Composite Armor (5250)
Ladar Sensor Cluster (135)
Nanomechanical Microprocessor (1800)
Nuclear Reactor Unit (45)
Plasma Thruster (75)

Making all of these items is not cheap.  First, the blueprints cost 4.5 million isk each.  Each item requires a separate advanced science skill and the skill books cost 10 million isk each.  I had some of the skills already because of the work I do with research agents, but for those just starting out the price is rather ... pricey.

Of course, purchasing the advanced moon materials required to build the items is also going to be pricey.  I compiled the list I need to make a Mastodon.

Fermionic Condensates (45)
Fernite Carbide (274,800)
Ferrogel (495)
Fullerides (5,100)
Hypersynaptic Fibers (270)
Nanotransistors (11,235)
Phenolic Composites (2,025)
Sylramic Fibers (3,375)

Now, I didn't use a decryptor when inventing my blueprint copy, so this is the list is for a BPC with a material level of -4.  A 50% wastage factor isn't pretty, is it?  Looking back, I really should have used a Calibration Data (+3 ME Modifier) or Advanced Theories (+1 Max Run Modifier, +2 ME Modifier) decryptor.  So last night I took a quick trip to low-sec and found a station where I only had to wait 3 days for a copy slot and started making more Mammoth blueprint copies.  Now since I plan on using an Advanced Theories decryptor, I followed the advice on the Evelopedia and am making them max run copies.  Sure, I have to wait 3 weeks for the run to finish, but that will give me time to actually buy all of the moon materials using buy orders instead of just picking up sell items.

I have the feeling that even if I only succeed once that I'll save money just on the moon material costs.  As it is, I think actually purchasing a ship off the market is actually cheaper.  But then again, I'm building the ship for fun, not to make money.

Vile Rat Is Not A Wise Man

In Eve Online, the elections for the 6th Council of Stellar Management are currently under way.  Three candidates, Goonswarm Federation chief The Mittani, White Tree from Test Alliance Please Ignore, and Goodwaffe diplomat Vile Rat are running as "The Three Wise Men".  Well, with everything Mittens has done in the game, he deserves the title.  And after using the CSM issues site and finding out how much I agree with White Tree, I will grant him the title "wise".  But Vile Rat?

I have a major issue with one of the answers Vile Rat gave concerning passive income generation.  Here is the statement and his answer.

Statement:  "All forms of personal passive income (such as RnD agents) should be removed."

Vile Rat:  "No effort income generation is an isk faucet.  The original BPO lottery was a dumb idea and the current iteration is also a pointless flow of money into a game suffering from a lack of income scarcity as it is."

While I can agree with the original BPO lottery being a dumb idea, the rest of the statement shows a pretty disgraceful ignorance of how the Eve economy works.  Disgraceful, at least, if you are running for CSM.  First off, research agents produce datacores, not isk, so don't bring new cash into the game like missioning does.  Players get their money from other players, not NPCs.  Isk faucets involve payments from NPCs, like mission rewards or the bounties a player gets from ratting.

Second, creating tech 2 blueprint copies involves paying money to NPCs (at least in public facilities) not receiving money from them.  Trust me, I'm learning all about that now.  Paying money to NPCs is actually an isk sink.  Big difference.

I agree with The Mittani's answer to this question, "Passive income is key for people who have jobs or want to PvP."  But if Mittens came up with the campaign slogan "The Three Wise Men", he came up one man short.

Eve University Gets More Payback

When selecting a corporation to join in Eve Online, doing a little bit of research always helps.  One often overlooked consideration is whether the corporation you applied to has ever war-decced Eve University.  Why?  Because the people running Eve University have long memories and are always looking for revenge.

The latest example: Empire of Duckeye.  Back in December 2009 the two-person corp (well, Duckeye and his alt) decided to execute a faildec against Eve University.  Basically, a faildec is a wardec in which the corporation attacking the Uni just doesn't provide the student body any targets.  But whether you take out the Uni POS or just make people station spin, the Uni will remember.

Perhaps more importantly, the Uni's graduates never forget, and they are everywhere.  Especially in wormholes.  And on March 5-6, a joint Eve University/Adhocracy Incorporated task force destroyed an Empire of Duckeye POS in wormhole J112404.  Eve University reported on its website:

And perfect it was – within the first hours of the infiltration, E-UNI and their ADHC allies had set up an operational POS of their own to stage the combat from. Reports began to come through that Duckeye was rapidly self destructing the ships he had stored in his POS, to prevent them coming into enemy hands. One such notable ship loss was a Legion class advanced cruiser – an extremely expensive ship that is highly sought after.

“It is unclear at this time how many assets were destroyed by Duckeye himself to prevent us from seizing them,” an ILN Commanding Officer noted. “A Carrier class ship was also spotted, but it was logged offline in deep space so as not to be spotted or engaged.”

I'm not sure that the Unistas realize that Empire of Duckeye is no longer a one-man operation.  Dotlan currently shows the corp with 14 members and the Battleclinic killboard for the corp shows multiple members.  I wonder if those members know that part of the reason for their loss is that Duckeye wardecced the Uni over a year ago.