Since my last post there’s been several changes to my Eve-playing, as well as my gained perspective of the game. Because of all the changes, I feel I will be empowered to give you a complete, fuller experience in reading this blog.
So, just what are these new changes? Well… I could run them as a bulleted list right here, but there wouldn’t be much point in having a blog, now would there? This is why I will explain and comment each change, so you too can get a better understanding of my motivations and their end result.
New alt
I finally decided to get myself an alt. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term, an alt is an alternate character. Technically, an ALT is from the same account as your primary character – in my case, it’s a second account to be able to play 2 characters at the same time. This way, I can train for something else than the regular “pew-pew” type of character I started with.
I was looking for the most diverse possible experience. I was also looking to get a different perspective on the game – one that would involve politics, administration, and finance/trade. So I found a wiki article that showed me all the different combinations of characters that you can create, and I found that the most even character is part of the Gallente – Jin Mei – Saan Go caste. This char ended up having a 7 across the board for his attributes – which is very evened-out, and will definitely come in handy when I want to train for something other than that “pew-pew” job.
As of now, Jaime DeLaCruz (he almost looks gangsta) is already trained for Trade and Social skills, and is well on his way to be trained in Corp Management and Science. That way I will have a handle on cash issues, something Gavri’el doesn’t. He’s mostly a mission runner, and not too adept at Trade or Science. Jaime will be a fine leader one day, and I’m especially anxious to have him pilot an Orca, just so I can have Gavri’el mine by himself in his Hulk.
Another really interesting point is that I will try to keep him neutral — I won’t have him get some standing with other corps or alliances. That way, if I ever want him to be a leader, I can start him in whichever direction I want. If I ever wanna travel to a different part of space, that shouldn’t be a problem with a neutral standing across the board.
Back to Level 3
I have recently noticed that I now have access to Level 4 Command missions with the Caldari Navy. So I decided I’d take a shot – except that I was in a Dominix, and I was having trouble with an enemy Battleship at the end of a lvl3 mission. So I figured I’d start training my Missile Launcher Operation skills, so I could really hit every BS extra-hard.
So I went to buy a Megathron, since it was the one ship I could see that would really help with its 2 launcher hardpoints. And I started running a Level 4 mission.
When it took me 8 warpouts to complete it, I decided to keep playing level 3 missions, only I’d find an agent who’s worth it. And sure enough, I did. He sent me into 0.4 space for a mission.
And I got ransomed.
This is the most awesome thing to see; because I’d read about things like this happening, I was able to keep cool when they destroyed my ship and scrambled my pod. I was asked for 50 million ISK or my life. I preferred keeping my implants, so I gave them ‘everything’ I had left – along with insurance money for the ship. Luckily I was let go, and I quickly realized that Pirates, even in Eve, have a Code of Honor. They trusted me to give them everything, and when I did, they let me go. I ran home then, lemme tell ya!
Afterwards, I was told by my corpmates I was learning the hard way… I didn’t think so at the beginning, but now I’m starting to see the wisdom in that – so no more missioning in Low Sec!!!
Nowadays, I’m farming Level 3s — especially missions like Angel Extravaganza, which has a huge payout in terms of bountys and booty. (And no, I don’t mean ‘Exotic Dancers’). After every downtime, I can simply go back to an unreported mission, and do it all over again for bounty and loot. The payout for that kind of mission is 10 times as much as the speed bonus offers, which is a really good thing considering I have to pay back my destroyed ship!
Eve-Mag.com
Ever heard of this site? Great online magazine about Eve. Writers there are top notch – anyone who reads the ”Winterblink blog” or “A Mule In Eve” will be very interested in the quality articles in this site. I myself have joined the staff of writers, and it’s a true honor to write alongside such great players and writers. Hopefully you will have caught my first article — Enter Level 4 Missions. I will still be writing here, but once in a while an article will show up on Eve-Mag.com. Keep the site in your favorites – I have good stuff in store for you guys!
That said, this is my update. I’d love to write more right now, but time flies and this article needs to go online. More in another article very soon!
