Month: November 2019

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Signaleer Sloopy Noopers

Editor’s Note: Back to our Signaleer Series! Really enjoying these and hope more of our Signaleers will jump in.

Sloopy Noopers

What attracted you to EVE Online and how long have you played?

I’ve always had a long fascination with space and sci-fi. I lived in the shadow on the Lords Bridge Observatory in Cambridge for many years and spent a lot of time at the observatory open days whenever they happened. I’ve never really been much of a gamer but was drawn to EvE by the combination of stunning graphics and the immense backstory and lore. Everyone is familiar with the stories of massive battles and the intrigue that can go on within corporations and I would be lying if I said that didn’t play a part in piquing my interest but, in all honesty, it was the sheer vastness of space and the idea of traveling space in a way that I wanted without having to engage with any specific style of gameplay which really pulled me in.

I’ve been playing seriously for around eighteen months, so still a relatively new pilot by the standards of EvE but I had a trial account a few years ago before Alpha was a thing, I let that lapse due to other commitments but I enjoyed my time in the game so much I was always eager to revisit the game and give it a proper go. So, I signed up as an Alpha and played for a few months to see if it was what I remembered and eventually went Omega once I was sure it was for me. As I said, I’ve never really been a bigger gamer and I would say that I’m still not, the freedom to do what I want, when I want, how I want that EvE offers means it doesn’t feel like an achieve “x” to get “y” kind of game and I think this is what keeps me hooked.

What is your background as a pilot? Did you jump right into exploration, start in the military, hired by a corporation, or something else?

My character is Gallente as their story appeals to me. I have a fondness for a good time and the freedom to do what I want as much as the Gallente so they just feel like a natural fit for me (If I could I’d be spending a lot of my hard earned ISK at the pleasure hubs!). I actually have a fairly dull career path I’m afraid. I started off running missions in Federation space before joining a mission running corp (I don’t remember who) who didn’t really do anything. I floated around in that corp paying my taxes without really engaging with them before I decided that I would just go it alone. I left that corp and started running missions for the Brutor Tribe and was making some decent cash doing so.

After a while doing this I inevitably started to look for something else and exploration seemed like the natural progression, to be honest it was actually the main reason I came to New Eden in the first place, I just got waylaid in mission running (it is fun making explosions). I trained up the skills and got myself into an Astero and started diving wormholes and travelling around the cluster to see what was there. Once I got my first Stratios and was able to take on the unsecured Sleeper caches I was completely hooked on wormhole diving and exploration and have never looked back.

What attracted you to explore New Eden? What is your goal and have you achieved it?

The sheer vastness of New Eden was, for me, impossible to resist. I found the idea that I could spend years exploring systems and still not see everything it has to offer was just too much of a temptation. I love stumbling across sites to run and the remnants of EvE’s history there are to see are impressively numerous. Beyond the sensible measure of checking routes for gate camps, I tend not to seek out too much information about regions or constellations before I go for a roam. I’ll make sure I have all the important intel in hand (is it a Sov system and whose, who are the local NPCs) but other than that I like to just go in blind. If there’s a beacon I’ll warp to it, I’ll check out the local planets, find somewhere to make camp and start exploring.

At the moment I live in K-Space and just jump in and out of wormhole chains. I can easily see myself taking an extended camping trip in J-Space at some point. I am very attracted to the idea of a drifter, wherever takes my fancy and seeing what’s there. I have clones dotted throughout the cluster and jump between them as the mood takes me. It’s only a matter of time before I make a semi-permanent home in J-Space because why not. I have an obsession with the lore of New Eden, particularly the Triglavians. I’m currently spending a lot of time reading up and researching the Triglavians and Drifters and would love to build a resource which can be used by those interested in the history and how to combat them. I’m quite interested in the politics and history of the big blocks and would love to spend some time researching and documenting this too. That’s all a long way off though, I’m still finding my feet.

What attracted you to Signal Cartel? Any corp related experiences you’d like to share and/or any Credo related stories that would be of interest?

Once I realized that exploration was what I wanted to do, I started to look around for exploration corps to join in order to learn more and team up with like-minded people. I don’t really have an interest in PvP and ultimately just want to roam the cluster and see what is out there. I’d seen the rescue caches several times on my travels but assumed they must be a trap, some element that I just didn’t understand or some wormhole corp thing that was none of my business. I read something on the main EvE forum where Signal Cartel where mentioned as the best corp for my sort of exploration and decided to do some research. After reading up this definitely seemed like somewhere I would like to call home.

The Credo very much appealed to me, I loved the idea of actively opting out of the more aggressive and antagonistic side of New Eden while offering a useful service to the wider community. I haven’t regretted my decision to join at any point and hope to make Signal Cartel my home for a long time. My first experience with what the Credo means to the EvE community was only a few days into my time in the corp. I was hauling some gubbins in High-Sec and got a few waves and some very friendly messages from folks in local. That made me realize that I had definitely made the right choice. The most amazing Signal Cartel experience I have had was in real life; I have a Signal Cartel patch on my jacket and was at my local pub. Someone spotted the patch and made a point of coming over and talking to me in order to let me know they had been rescued by the corp. That was a very surreal experience.

What is the name of your favorite ship that you enjoy flying the most while exploring?

Ormar Inn Langi

The ship I am most fond of is my Stratios, by a long way! The Stratios is a fantastic ship for exploration and is just beautiful to look at. The Stratios I fly is called “Ormar Inn Langi:, it took me a while to get the fit right for my purposes and lost a couple on route. One loss was to a Tengu but I was extremely proud of just how long it managed to hold its tank and it gave the Tengu a run for its money, that was my first fit. The only issue with that fit was that I had no way to break the lock so I just sat there taking a pounding forever before the ship finally popped. I definitely learned from that experience! The second I lost was while I was taking on some Sleepers. I hit one too many triggers and just got swamped by the incoming DPS, I learned a lot from that one as well! I’ve settled on a fit now and it’s serving me well for my purposes.

[Stratios, Ormar Inn Langi]

Medium Anti-Explosive Pump II
Medium Trimark Armor Pump II
Medium Auxiliary Nano Pump II

400mm Steel Plates II
Medium Armor Repairer II
Medium Ancillary Armor Repairer
Capacitor Power Relay II
Capacitor Power Relay II

10MN Afterburner II
Large Cap Battery II
Burst Jammer II
Ligature Integrated Analyzer

Covert Ops Cloaking Device II
Sisters Core Probe Launcher
Drone Link Augmentor II
Quad Light Beam Laser II
Quad Light Beam Laser II

During your travels, what has been the most interesting fact, amazing sight, or other aspect of New Eden that has surprised you?

I love shattered wormholes, travelling to the epicentre is a must if you find yourself in one. There are a lot of amazing sights that I have yet to see and I intend on firing up my Astero and doing a bit of sightseeing at some point in the near future. The thing I have found most interesting is just how empty most of New Eden is, something that I very much enjoy. Once you get away from the main routes it is possible to find yourself in areas where you will see no one and then suddenly jump into a system in the middle of nowhere with a mining flotilla in action or a local hub and then, suddenly, another run of empty system with only the occasional traveler. I like this, many would see it as a bad thing but, personally, I see it as being an organic gathering of people. Naturally they tend to clump together for protection and support and I find it fascinating that this seems to be true even in New Eden. I’ve come to realize that the lone roamer seems to be quite rare.

What have you learned or what advice would you give to someone interested in exploring New Eden?

Just give it a go! It’s quite easy to get going with exploration and I honestly wish that I had started a lot earlier than I did. As long as you know what you want to achieve and train towards it you can be up and running and headed towards the best ships and skills quite quickly. Other than that I think it is important to remember that if you want to get the most out of exploration you will be operating in the most dangerous areas of New Edan and Anoikis, accept that fact, accept the inevitable losses and don’t be disheartened when they happen. Exploration is a dangerous business and you will lose ships. Every loss is a chance to learn and your skills and experience will be growing all the time. Exploration can be quite profitable so if you learn for the losses and don’t give up you can easily cover them quite quickly (I lost an Astero, two Helios, and two clones in less than a week recently, I made the cost back in the same amount of time). Also, don’t forget that the Credo doesn’t prevent us (Signal Cartel) from protecting ourselves, we just don’t shoot first!

Do you have a favorite image from your explorations?

As I mentioned, I’m a tad obsessed with the Triglavians. This is my favorite image I’ve got recently. This is a tactical overview of a major conduit in a world ark site. If you’re feeling brave I’d recommend having a look around some of these invasion sites, especially with the Triglavian Dreadnaught coming!

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Cry ‘Havoc!’

“Cry ‘Havoc!’, and let slip the dogs of war.”
-Mark Antony, Act 3, Scene 1 in Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare

Void Raven

I love to shower. The gushing sound, the warm water striking the top of my head and then cascading down over my body and the steam swirling in the enclosed space, softening sharp angles, all combine to transport me away, if only temporarily, to somewhere quiescent and removed from the concerns of daily life. Finally washed free of viscous pod goo, I turn off the water and reach for the towel on the heating rack through lingering steam. Warm, luxurious fluffiness envelopes me. The soothing sensation of toweling continues to distract me from the real world, repelling an unease that has been building insidiously within me over the past several months.

A short time later, I’m dressed again, and my anxieties slowly make their return. I need another distraction; something fun and entertaining.

“I wonder if there are any Signaleers hanging out at the bar tonight? I’ll head down there for a drink and some laughs”, I think as I look out the window at the giant nebula so prominent in my home system.

The station orbiting Zoohen III is owned and administered by the Amarr Theology Council Tribunal, the last great vestige of the religious sect that once ruled the Amarrian empire and they enforce strict moral policies. Unsurprisingly then, given the stultifying environment, there are only a handful of official bars and they adhere strictly to rules that serve solely to curtail enjoyment. Thus, I prefer the lively, unregistered underground bars that do their best to remain “under-the-radar”. But I am not completely naïve. Patronizing these establishments carries some risk – they are outside the capsuleer zones and in the baseliner districts, where capsuleers must tread more cautiously, and there is also the possibility that there are informants that provide information to the authorities that is useful in conducting raids of such places.

Arriving at the pub, I don’t immediately see anyone I recognize from Signal Cartel. It’s a great little place, with low lighting and strings of small colored lights hanging from the ceiling and walls and draped over an assortment of eclectic decorations and other accessories strewn about. A guitarist is playing in the corner. There are always some baseliners present here and even though the pod connection ports on my body are hidden by my clothing – so that I don’t stand out as a capsuleer – they can tell. I think it’s just the way I carry myself.

In this pub, capsuleers are usually tolerated, so long as we try to blend in and don’t flaunt our privileged position. Tonight, though is different. As I walk past one of the tables, an elderly man stands up in front of me, blocking my way with an outstretched arm to my chest.

“My son. My son…”, he begins. I know what is coming next. “He… he died on a ship piloted by one of your kind.” He narrows his eyes. “I hate you all”, he says venomously.

I look straight ahead, silent. His friends quickly pull him back down into his seat. One of them whispers something into his ear. No-one wants a confrontation here that will bring in the authorities. As I continue to walk past him, he spits onto my boots and makes a universally recognizable rude gesture with both his hands.

A little shaken, I sit down at the bar counter and, on the other side, Tharu walks over.

“Hey Void… sorry about that. How’s it going otherwise? What brings you in tonight?”

I like Tharu, he’s unpretentious and genuinely friendly to capsuleers; he doesn’t harbor the loathing for us that so many baseliners, like the man earlier, do. I can’t fault them really; we do leave the death of innocents in the wake of our vanity. But we also defend New Eden and all her inhabitants against deadly threats. A matter that has been welling inside me of late.

“Yeah…don’t worry about that guy. Doing okay thanks, Tharu. You? I lost a Helios today so I had to come back to re-ship. Where’s everyone tonight?”

“Out tending and sowing – it’s Crinklefest II”, he replies.

“Oh yeah, right. I should be doing that too. But I’m here now; I’ll just stay for a drink or two and then go out tomorrow.”

“Sorry about the ship, Void. I know it’s hard for you when that happens. So… whiskey then?” he asks.

“Yup”, I reply. I always have a whiskey after losing a ship. In remembrance of my crew – whom I have failed. It’s an insignificant, ultimately meaningless gesture, but it’s my tradition. My way of saying sorry and goodbye.

“You know, you don’t look like you’re doing okay. Sure everything’s fine?” Tharu is also perceptive.

“Well… honestly, I’m becoming more concerned about the future.”

“Oooooh… deep stuff there, Void. But if you capsuleers are beginning to feel uneasy about the future, well then…”, he trails off.

“So, what is it about the future that concerns you?”, a voice says to my left.

Startled, I turn to look at the stranger sitting next to me. She’s drinking a beer and staring straight ahead.

“Do you always listen in on the conversations of others?” I ask.

She turns to look at me. As jet-black as my hair is, hers shimmers in juxtaposition, like we are opposing pieces on a chessboard. Her hair frames a face of ochre clay with bangs falling over her eyebrows. Absurdly luminous eyes study me intently. A ‘Y’ shaped scar runs from her top lip to the base of her nose and a single, dark tattooed stripe runs from her forehead over her right eye, curving off over her cheekbone towards her ear. A small sparkle emanates from her left earlobe. She takes a sip of her beer. An inscription is tattooed on her forearm, but I can’t make it out in the light.

“T’alisque Agittain ”, she says. “Fellow Signaleer. Just joined Signal Cartel and still finding my way around. Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Void Raven.”

“Wha… What?” I stammer. “How do you… how do you know my name and that I’m in Signal Cartel?”

She shrugs her shoulders, “Read your recent interview with Katia Sae and saw your picture. And heard you talking to Tharu about Crinklefest II.”

I nod my head sheepishly as I feel the heat flush across my face.

T’alisque smiles and says, “Has anyone ever told you that you blush in Triglavian Red, Void Raven?”

“No. And you can just call me Void.”

“Hmm… not sure I will. Thing is, I like your full name. Got a shadowy ring to it. But my name, on the other hand, is a mouthful – so I just go by T’ali. What do you do here?”

“SAR stuff; exploration – and a little research on wormholes, Drifters and Trigs on the side.”

“Okay, that’s great. Me, I like fleets. Taking the fight to the sleepers. Logi or DPS. So now, with introductions out of the way, I’m still curious – what about the future concerns you?”

“Well… where to start? Things have become way more unsettled in New Eden over the past year. You know, first it was the discovery of abyssal space, then came the Triglavian Invasions in – of all places – high sec, followed by the Drifter Invasions in null, which then experiences a black out, because the Secure Commerce Commission can’t keep their damn fluid router network up. And now we have emerging conduits and Trig patrols springing up everywhere. Oh, and don’t forget that the Trigs are fond of the word ‘extirpation’. What I’m saying is things are more freaking chaotic. And it concerns me… a lot. Frightens me, even.”

I stop to catch my breath. T’ali is just looking at me, beer in hand. Her tattoo is more visible now and I notice it is written in a language unfamiliar to me.

“Huh. Well, aren’t you just a regular little ray of starlight, Void Raven? Tell me, are you always like this? Because if you are, I’ll have to do my drinking with other Signaleers, okay? You do know the Drifters have gone back to their filthy, stinking Hives and the null blackout is over, right? Shouldn’t that count as good news?”

“How can we be sure the Drifters won’t come back, in even greater numbers and with more force? And they say null could blackout again without notice”, I grumble.

T’ali nods her head, “Hmmm… fair point”, and then continues, “Listen – first, don’t panic okay? We’ve got this covered – us capsuleers, including you. We may not have all the answers yet, but we’ve always come through before when faced with threats and we’ll do so again. Sure, the threats today may seem more acute, but we’ll just up our game to match theirs. We will need to fight though… I think there’s no getting around that. It does seem like there’s a storm brewing on the horizon. Everyone will have to do their bit – the industrial class will build the machines of war and the warrior class will rain havoc upon the enemy. And so on, you know.”

T’ali checks the time. “Oh… shoot… I’ve got to run. Say, I just had an idea. I need to buy an Augeror in Dodixie for a sleeper fleet tomorrow. With the current wardec, I could use someone to scout ahead for me on the way back. You interested, Void Raven?”

“I just showered a little over an hour ago to clean off pod goo”, I say. T’ali raises her eyebrows.

“Okay, sure, I’ll scout for you, T’ali. And it’s Void”, I say – again.

“Great! Let’s go. I’ll meet you outside Zoo and we can fleet up.”

We get up to leave, and T’ali suddenly grabs my arm.

“Oh, by the way, I saw you glance a few times at the tattoo on my arm. Want to know what it says? Here, take a look.” She steps closer, holding out her forearm for me to read the tattoo.

“’Si vis pacem, para bellum.’ Well, it sounds good I guess, but I have no idea what it means”, I say.

T’ali looks me directly in the eyes, and replies, “It’s a very ancient language and it means ‘If you want peace, prepare for war’, Void Raven.”