Diary of a Pod Pilot

Finals day! Again, bolded are winners and underlined are my guesses for the contests. Big congrats to Morwen Lagann on winning the G-19 keyboard!

• 15:00 The Kadeshi vs. Perihelion Alliance: Minmatar rush with Machariels versus Tengu kite team.
• 15:20 DarkSide. vs. Pandemic Legion: Amarr rush team versus Tengu / Guristas rush team. The latter rushed right in and got their asses handed.
• 15:40 Black Legion vs. P0wer 0f Tw0: Proteus / Loki with Guardian support versus Kite team with Nighthawk support (no logistics). Kite team got kited by Loki long range webs and brought to its knees.
• 16:00 White Noise. vs. Outbreak.: Shield team versus ECM with rush Tengus.
• 16:20 Wildly Inappropriate. vs. Paisti Syndicate: Minmatar rush versus ECM. WI was able to make a lot of the ECM fall, but Paisti was the stronger opponent in a superior setup.
• 16:40 Negative Ten. vs. HYDRA RELOADED: Recon mixbag versus ECM with rush Tengus.
• 17:00 B A N E vs. WE FORM VOLTRON: Gallente damage verus Minmatar rush. Flawless victory for Voltron.
• 17:20 SOLAR FLEET vs. RAZOR Alliance: Kiting with damps versus anti rush Amarr team.

BREAK

• 18:20 Perihelion Alliancevs. DarkSide.: Minmatar rush versus Amarr rush team from previous match. Excellent target calling from Darkside.
• 18:40 Black Legion vs. Outbreak.: Tengu/ Guristas rush versus Minmatar rush team.
• 19:00 Paisti Syndicate vs. HYDRA RELOADED: ECM / Minmatar versus Minmatar with damp and Bhaalgorn as flagship.
• 19:20 WE FORM VOLTRON vs. RAZOR Alliance: Caldari with Curse and Huginns versus Gallente rush with logistics. Long game! Shame of the boundary violations for Voltron. Razor beat what should have been their counter with style.
• 20:00 DarkSide. vs. Outbreak.: Legion / Blood raider / Curse setup for the third time, versus Minmatar rush.
• 20:30 HYDRA RELOADED vs. RAZOR Alliance: Minmatar rush versus Minmatar / Curse rush. Curses are pretty deadly for Hydra. Hydra opted to take out Logistics first and then take on the Curses. Top piloting!
• 21:30 Outbreak.  vs. HYDRA RELOADED: Minmatar rush versus Gallente rush with damps. Game was totally engineered. Too bad, but that’s just EVE at its finest I guess.

We had a ton of people lined up in the Skyhook for the finals too: Black Arcturus, Aria Jenneth, Vincent Pryce, Literia, Mikael Angelo, Lt Graham, Nikita Alterana, Victoria Stecker, Kimochi Rendar, Esna Pitoojee, Jekaterine, Mike Azariah, Kyoko Sakoda and Jekaterine.

Big thanks for CCP for setting this up, lots of lols were had, and I really loved that the devs came on and answered (hard) questions.

Day 6-7: Sunday and Monday: R&R and the journey home

Time for rest and recuperation to nourish our tired bodies and souls. So we headed to the “tower by the penis mall” (you know a country is small when you can give a cab driver directions like that and they take you to the right spot) for brunch. Felt like we were trolling the place, it was all fancy pants and we rolled in there with our newly mohawked people, gamer shirts and hungover looks. Food was amazing though and resulted in a second foodcoma that week.

We ran rather late however and I decided to skip out on spending just two hours at the Blue Lagoon in favor of getting some hours of sleep. Which turned out to be an excellent plan as in the evening when everyone returned the drinking and partying was picked up again. So instead of going to bed and not getting sleep anyway worrying that I might not wake up for the taxi that would arrive at 5 AM (I am an incredibly sound sleeper) I just stayed up and chatted with people for one last time. Which gave me a chance to meet old Apex Unlimited alliancemate Gorion Wassenar. And enjoyed Jank’s pancakes one last day (3 AM and semi-drunk really is the best time to make them). By the time the taxi arrived to take a group of us to the airport everyone finally went to bed.

The journey back home was smooth sailing all the way, real nice flying weather. Vince was not so lucky, his flight was cancelled resulting in a 10 hour wait. At least they got him a dayroom. Had my usual fight with security again, even though this time I had taken off my shoes they still gave my bag a full search. Not the coins this time, which I had already taken out, but I forgot to take out one adapter which was hard to find in a black bag. Chatted a little with Leon while waiting at my gate and ended up participating in an anonymous airport survey at Stockholm airport, and was totally knackered when I finally ended up in Schiphol again, despite getting some good sleep on both planes. Luckily my boyfriend was there to pick me up and drive me home after getting dinner at the Burger King. Nomnom junk food. I stayed up a little longer hugging my cat who was trying to fake not having missed me (he was cranky all week for me not being there, such a drama queen really) and chatting with the alliance. Couldn’t focus for shit though and called it an early night, only to wake up like over 12 hours later.

All in all I had a really wonderful time, I really miss the people, I so want to go to the next Fanfest again, and I want to give a big shoutout to all the people I met up with and really made this the best Fanfest till date. For those who did not go this year, seriously, go next year if you can make it. It is so much more than just some presentations.

Has it really only been one month? I feels like so much longer already. The 17th of last month was when we officially moved into Curse, so it must be true. Perhaps it feels this way because everything moved so fast. Once we were on location and began to get our pilots running through the standings redemption programma, applications began rolling in. Ironic, because initially we planned to get some more numbers first, and then roll it. But some diplomatic contacts changed that and we seized an opportunity that would have otherwise passed us by.

So here we are, one month in, and we’re doing well for ourselves. We have our little corner of Curse for ourselves to do agent work in, we have some like minded groups which we are on the same line with, and we’re actively working on getting combat operations up to “old” levels. We are also doing something that is pretty unique both presently and historically in New Eden, being a “pirate” faction loyalist alliance that bases out of the sovereign space of its faction.

We took a short stint into w-space a week or so ago, which was very educational, except that our potential targets vanished on us (a careless Heron did perish). Few days ago I also joined our new addition Deviance Cartel on a good old roam through Molden Heath. Got ourselves a Drake and a Hurricane in one of the asteroid belts, with an Ishkur just barely slipping away. The Hurricane pilot did try and run out, but at some point he just … halted and looked as if to turn back. I am not sure if it was an attempt to align out, but for once I did recall to overheat my warp disruptor to catch him out of regular reach. I swear it was as if I hear Yishal’s voice ring through my head, reminding me to use every edge available to ensure victory. Or maybe that clone just needs to be double-checked. We also snatched a pair of Bestowers later that evening, not sure what those careless sods were doing, but that should be a lesson learned for them. Shame they weren’t transporting anything of value, but well, can’t have it all in one evening right? I did end up blowing some of the hard work I had done to get restored into CONCORD’s good graces, but frankly I don’t really worry. I can hire help for logistical purposes should I need it, and with the way we are going, it looks like others will have to keep the Sansha incursions at bay.

I dropped by at the one year anniversary costumed ball of Knighthood of the Merciful Crown yesterday. Not something I’d usually attend, but as I was in Empire space already and with no plans of the evening I accepted Vincent Pryce’s kind invitation and got myself sorted with an angel costume. Wings alas were not found on short notice, but once at the venue Shalee Lianne was kind enough to lend me a second pair she owns, and Nikita Alterana offered a pair for future use as well should I need it. Now I feel almost odd, being an Angel, yet not owning a pair of wings to dress up with. Am I missing something here? The ball was lovely however, and it was fun to dance, but as I am planet-bound in only a few more hours I decided not to stay too long. Nethys Axion has been put in charge of Ghost Festival during my absence, not an easy task for someone recently appointed a director, but I have full trust in her skill. She as well as many of our new pilots have been absolutely amazing and I am proud to have them call me their boss. I’ve got a real good feeling about this, now more than ever before I know this is the path I’ve always wanted to be on, and I will keep on pushing for success.

Our rightful home

Been a good while again since my last update. Not for a lack of action, that’s for sure. I dare say things are busier than ever. And while they aren’t always easy, for the large part I am enjoying myself. That’s right, I love my job.

So what’s been happening? Well, the most important part, which I somehow always mention as last when catching up with friends or other contacts, is that we’re now basing primarily out of Curse. All of Naraka except for PRELI is, in fact. Well, and Aria, but Aria does as Aria likes and that’s alright with me.

We’ve grown quite a bit and I really like our new pilots. They want to be here, too. That helps, having people that share your vision, rather than cater to their visions. Ma’asei Merkabah likewise has taken in some solid pilots. We work together as a coherent unit.

Diplomacy has been intense. Some capsuleers down here can be so difficult. And I don’t do that. Why make things complicated when they can be really simple? Less room for error, more efficiency, and not as much headache and frustration. I understand it though, how thing sometimes become the way they are. But this fear of change and the clinging to the status quo? A strange thing in a region that is constantly changing. I hope it is a pattern we will never fall into.

I met up with Vincent Pryce the other day. It was good to see him again, even though things haven’t been good at all for him. He’s changed for the better in the face of terrible events. Even though he sees it as paying a price for all the bad things he’s done. I hope my words gave him some comfort, as I believe he is far stronger than he thinks he is at times. But I am not a professional psychiatrist, the best I can offer is the advice of someone who cares.

Vincent told me a little about how things are with Veto now. A tricky situation. Until word comes from Venal they are told to not fight back any Sansha forces. I wonder how my other ex-pilots are dealing with that. I can think of a few that must be dying to open fire. Yet they can’t. What if Venal decides to ally with the Sansha? What will they do then? What will Ethan do, even? I am also curious about the future of Veto, now that all forces have been merged into one central unit. In his latest IGS announcement he hinted at further details being released at the start of April — an unluckily chosen date, if you ask me — but even with holding top-level clearance for a while I can’t do more than guess. But those are worries that are best not to linger on too long. What is important is that we can strike down every last Sansha if we please to do so and we’ll even get a pat on the back for it.

Now that I mentioned the IGS, I had a little fun with what looks like to have been Revan’s last public event ever. Both Velarra and I made it through the first round even and I had a long chuckle as Koronakesh’s commentary. Milder than I had expected it to be, actually. A shame the second round fell right into a period my agenda was already overbooked. But then things took a strange turn when politics and love meddled into it all, the short version being that Jade Constantine — Revan’s lover — did not approve and used her position to have things called off. Must say I am disappointed, though not surprised in the solution Revan chose. Shame, at least an event like this brought some change to the ever so predictable back and forth arguments.

I’m sure I am forgetting a thing or two, but time is precious and I have to get back to work. Paperwork is nearly all done, luckily, so now we’re getting to the good bits like making ISK and enforcing our position within the region. More on that in a future post, I’m sure.

Rixx Javix, author of Eveoganda, asked in one of his posts “What is in your hangar?”. Here is my list:

• Apotheosis “Apotheosis”: Never got around naming it, but proud to be the owner of one. If only we could have more Jove ships!
• Minmatar Shuttle “Duct Tape”: For blitzing into highsec and picking up skill books, or whenever that extra layer around your pod isn’t such a bad idea. Name should be rather obvious.
• Zephyr “Soar”: Another collectible, which I did get around naming.
• Punisher “Sparrowhawk”: Got several of these actually, for when I go out by myself, or there are frigate roams. Great fun to terrorize FW with. When thinking of a name for this one, I looked outside and saw said bird sitting in a nearby tree.
• Griffin “Ugly Duckling”: Support for frigate gangs, also known as pocket ECM. Can jam destroyers and even cruisers. Named after its looks.
• Rifter “Sandstorm”: For an upcoming themed op. Never flown this before, and as it seems this will be a suicide op it is decked out in tech I. Have the skills for a full tech II fit, so might be flying this more in the future if I like it. Ah, the joys of cross-training! Name was the first word that popped into my head when thinking of the high dps and speed it is known for, and the lovely rusty brown color.
• Cormorant “Crossfire”: Destroyer ops, another fun thing to fly into FW plexes. Inspired by this piraty track.
• Harpy “Facepuncher”: Blaster fit, name seemed fitting. For when something heavier than a regular frigate is required.
• Crow “Flatline”: Refers to the heartbeat signal of a dead person, because the sensor booster heightens the chance of catching pods and cracking them open.
• Anathema “Big brother”: It is watching you… Sees use in both exploration, finding players and small courier jobs.
• Manticore “Avalance”: DPS support for cloaky gangs. Named after the sudden impact of a lot of damage (when firing at the intended target).
• Purifier “Purgatory”: Once upon a time I had this great idea of ninja-ratting Sansha. Never got around it, and trading successes don’t make it needed right now either. Keeping the pair I have for when the Manticore would perish. Or when I do feel the need to purge some space zombies.
• Arbitrator “Mercutio”: T1 cruiser solo or gang roams. Got named after a ship from the Warhammer 40k novel Faith & Fire. Also have the “Mercutio Redux” exploration variant.
• Blackbird “Medusa”: ECM support for T1 cruiser roams. Its gaze will paralyze you on the spot!
• Pilgrim “Rabisu”: One of my favorite ships. Saw some work in the recent Operation Longshot as a mission prober. Just like the Arbitrator it can work with a variety of setups and be fitted according to taste. Kept the name Sahaquiel Faust had given to it before he gave it to Vincent who then together with the rest of the corp chipped in to present it fully fitted to me as a one year corp anniversary gift. The name comes from an Akkadian demon.
• Sacrilege “Sacrosanct”: Hasn’t seen much use so far, mainly because T2 cruisers cost an arm and a leg these days. Shame, because the sturdy tank and HAM launchers are something I really like. Name is a bit of a pun.
• Guardian “Medic”: Has seen all kinds of uses, from pvp to wormhole ops. Tends to keep people alive, if I am not too busy killmail whoring with the warrior II’s! *pilots screaming Medic are heard in the background”
• Onyx “Lodestone”: Bought this from Aria when she left us, and kept the name she had given to it.
• Badger “Corp Mascot”: Hangar decoration and a reminder of good times. Gets undocked once in a blue moon when lots of loot needs to be scooped up or for comedy relief.
• Drake “Valliant”: My other favorite ship at this moment. HAM setup, deals a nasty bit of damage, and has the advantage of not getting primaried all that often. Or had, after this post. Time to refit to classic bait drake stupid!
• Raven “Majesty”: POS bashing or home defense, depending on how I fit it. Have a level 4 mission variant floating around in Curse as well. Once upon a time the king piece of my hangar.
• Dominix “Aesuga”: Trained with the sole purpose of WH ops in mind. Spider-tanks Sleepers while melting them with Sentries. Kinda like a flying ISK machine. Named after a legendary weapon from another game.
• Machariel “Mont’ka”: Another ship with a story, in reality a gift from Verone from my 1th year in corp birthday, and kept its original name. Still in the process of fitting it and training for it. Until then it is the most sexy station-spinning ship ever!
• Archon “Raziel’s Paragon”: Given to me when Vaden Khale quit EVE. Kept the original name, all his ships followed the same naming scheme of D&D deities and spells / abilities.
• Revelation “Cyric’s Immolation”: Another gift from Vaden Khale. Coined the phrase “Revelation Driveby” and inspiration for the medal “Born in East-Side New Eden” which is awarded upon the opportunity to bring their capital weaponry to bear on frigate sized target and destroy them. Ah, good times!

Phew, long list, and there’s a few things missing, like a Falcon I’d like to get again, maybe a Curse at some point, and some armor-tanking BC / BS wouldn’t be bad to have either. Also promised Vaden Khale an in character blog post about his capital ships, which I plan to write either soon, or when I finish training for them.