Greetings my fellow corp men, women, & blog readers!!!

Welcome to the nineteenth installment of the EVE Blog Banter, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by none other than me, CrazyKinux. The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed to crazykinux@gmail.com. Check out other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

This months topic comes to us from @evepress, who he asks: The CSM: CCP’s Meta Game? The CSM, an EVE players voice to CCP. Right? In the grand scheme of things yes, the players bring up issues and the CSM presents them to CCP. But in its current iteration the CSM was supposed to be given small authority to assign CCP assets to projects that the CSM thought needed work on. As it has come out, this was not the case. So fellow bloggers, is the CSM worth it, has the CSM improved the game in any way, or is it just a well thought out scam by CCP to give us players a false sense of input in the game? What’s your take?

Ok folks,

Agatir here…

As everyone on the blog pack loves to get involved with CrazyKinux’s brain child…

This was something I had planned to comment on for my next blog, “Really it is all CCP’s & CSM’s fault… Really…” However it seems to be the “hot” topic.  I had organized my thoughts and was about to put them to paper…  But then two Blog pack members stated EXACTLY what I was thinking!!! So instead of trying to restate what they have said, I’d rather use this time to promote blogs which I read regularly!  These guys are consistent bloggers who love and play EVE.

RIXX JAVIX – EVEOGANDA

BTW folks Rixx has begun promotion of his brain child DEATHRACE 2010! If you think you have what it takes to burn past gate camps and avoid hostile fire…  You could make some iskies in this hi-speed game!!!

ROC WEILER – ROC’S RAMBLINGS

I was surprised to find another disgruntled SWG player here.  I have to give two thumbs up on this post… one for his EVE point of view, and a second for his SOE commentary.  It would seem we share the same soap box on the second topic.

If you like EVE based fiction and Minmatar this is the blog for you!!!  Roc is a born again health nut in real life, so you can find some good recipes too.

If you check out the EVEOGANDA and ROC’S RAMBLINGS posts then you see I’m a fan of what CCP is attempting to do.  I believe the direction CCP is heading will only make the game better, and will make it last longer.  That is what I want and desire as a fan of this sandbox we call EVE.  I have seen what poor decision making can do to a game. (ie SOE & SWG)  CCP is not SOE!  Remember this… a sandbox is full of SAND and each time  you play in it, or build something in it, it will never be the same again.

As a side note:

It is sad to say that we lost an EVE icon in Kane Rizzel – A Pirates Persepective.

If you have read any of his posts you can see that Kane has been looking for some Low-Sec love for some time.  He hasn’t gotten it, nor will get in the near future.  Kane is a solo player.  He is proud of his ability to work alone.  So he has decided to quit.  It sad to see him go as an EVE blogger, but unless your a fan of pirates you probably won’t miss him.   I’m not sure why the Emo rage quit…  but if he isn’t enjoying the game, it is probably time to move on.

Fly Safe… Stay Profitable…

Ag

Greetings my fellow corp men, women, & blog readers!!!

As a fellow blog reader I cannot help but read about the negative opinions concerning CCP’s current efforts to launch Incarna and DUST 514.  These opinions range from indifference to I don’t want it.  A good example of this can be found in Manasi’s A Mule in Eve Blog.  (BTW it is one of my favorite blogs to read!)  Manasi has proven to be very knowledgeable in PVP, based on experience and data collected through experimentation.  You can only get excited about PVP combat just by reading his blog.  However he, like many pod pilots, plays EVE for that singular experience, to fly in a ship (and blow things up).  If he invests in any other part of the game it is to supply his PVP exploits.

Now I would like to clarify, that any reference to “he” or “him” is not singularly directed at Manasi.  It is more to reference those PVP pilots that disagree or dislike the coming of Incarna & DUST 514 to the EVE universe and the loss of CCP resources it has had from fixing current game issues.  I just used Manasi, as he effectively expresses the concerns of a particular player base in EVE.  Well done sir! (And thanks for your work/post on the T1 Meta 4 vs T2 it was a good read)  In a sense, I am using him to show the fervor for PvP that drives a portion of the player base expectations for EVE expansions.

I, on the other hand, have an excitement for the introduction of Incarna and DUST 514.  Why?  It adds another layer of immersion into the realm of EVE.  For me EVE is not just a space combat simulator.  It is a chance to escape into the idea of exploring space.  To boldly go, where no one has gone before!  That may be why my favorite ship in the game is the Anathema?  The Anathema allows me the greatest possibility to go anywhere.  It has the greatest chance of getting past a gate camp.  It has the best bonuses in the game for probing, allowing me to explore wormholes or other hidden sites.  Not to mention I love to be the scout and give the fleet a warp in point!  I digress…

I like the idea of having another aspect of the Sci-Fi genre to explore.  Any fan of Sci-Fi has had dreams of walking around a station in space, to see what life will be like in the future.  I am not a hardcore RPer, but at times I do enjoy it.  Why?  It is another way to immerse myself in this game we call the sandbox.  A sandbox that is about to get bigger!  What we should understand is, that bigger is better!  Why?  It is better because it will bring in more players!  More players to shoot, more players to scam, more players to recruit to our corps, more players to provide us with the ships and resources to support our in game habits!

For those critics that think that more players will only increase the already inherent problems in EVE such as lag, overcrowding, or the game developing into what we don’t want.  That more players taking part in a different part of the game will take away CCP resources from addressing your concerns as a player…  I will have to agree with you.  An increase in population will most likely increase those problems, and those new folks in their stations will have demands of their own.   They’ll have demands for CCP resources to address their issues too.  That is where we as players have to do what we can to support such endeavors such as the CSM and those people that take part in them.  We have to continue to express our concerns in forums that CCP has access to.  So CCP knows what their paying customers want.  Again I digress…

Additionally my final desire for Incarna and DUST 514 is of a personal nature.  As an older MMORPG player I began my online gaming experience way back in the day.  I have played such games as Ultima Online, Everquest, City of Heroes, Star Wars Galaxies, and a few others.  Along the way I have met a lot of good folks that I enjoy playing with.  However, I can’t get them to come play EVE.  Why?  They attempt the trial version, and quickly realize that they are limited to the view of a single ship.  That the only customization and individualization they will have will be the modules that they fit on the ship.  For them EVE does not offer the level of immersion that they desire in a game.  For some folks they want not only to immerse themselves, but they want to escape as well.  For a few hours a day they want to feel that they are someone else exploring a world outside of their own.  If that what it takes to get more players, and my friends, into EVE then so be it!!!

***Disclaimer*** Even though I like the fact that CCP is adding layers to the immersion to bring in new players, I do NOT… WILL NOT… support any idea that will reduce the harsh unforgiving experience the sandbox can be!!!  I so would EMO RANGE QUIT1!! if EVE concedes to be anything like WoW!!!  I digress…  :D

One last word about stations and Incarna before I go…  I don’t know about you, but I have always dreamed about being able to put a cap in someone’s ass in a cantina like Han Solo did in Star Wars!  CSM & CCP make that happen!

Fly Safe… Stay Profitable…

Next Report: Agatir’s Guide to Wormhole Hunting… err I mean Scouting

SI Radio officially supports (in alphabetical order):

Mike Azariah

Mynxee

Song Li

TeaDaze

PLEX Giveaway – 8 days left – turn-in your submission!

PS: don’t try to be too professional about it and miss-out on the opportunity to win free PLEXes

Recruitment is officially closed – Thanks to all who applied!

We will re-open recruitment again probably end of May for any specific needs.

The third Blog Banter of 2010 comes to us from ChainTrap of the Into the unknown with gun and camera EVE Blog. He asks us: "Eve University turns six years old on March 15th; six years spent helping the new pilots of New Eden gain experience and understanding in a supportive environment. Eve is clearly a complicated game, with a ton to learn, so much that you never stop learning. So, the question is; What do you wish that someone had taken the time to tell you when you were first starting out? Or what have you learned in the interim that you’d like to share with the wider Eve community?"

298 days ago, we set foot inside wormhole space for the first time. Back then it was a group of 8 friends, most of us with less than 10M SPs at that time, that had absolutely no idea about wormholes, no idea about PVP (some say we still don’t have a clue), and had turned all the ISK in our wallets into a Medium POS, some supplies and fuel to last about two weeks.

We dared to venture into the unknown, dared to be bold and embraced the sandbox of the EVE Universe. In EVE – YOU – control your own destiny.

During that time, we managed:

…to make and burn more than 50 billion ISK
…to act as a fleet supporting each other instead of being a band of solo players
…to build capital ships
…to ride capital ships
…to self-destruct capital ships (damn you R&K!)
…to master the art of t3 production and make a fortune out of it
…to easily farm C6 plexes
…to have a show, podcast and blog related to w-space that acts as one of the definitive sources of information for EVE players
…to have played a major role into the CSM elections by hosting a series of interviews with Candidates
…to relay Alliance Tournament 7 for two weekends and commentate on the fights afterwards
…to fight alongside seasoned pilots
…to be considered celebrities and widely identified & to fight against (and win) against famous celebrities in planned deathmatches
…to organize our very own PVP tournament
…to lose ships due to friendly fire
…to strip belts out for vast amounts of minerals
…to mine mercoxit
…to keep losing ships and still have the "oh well.. no real harm done" mindset
…to manipulating wormholes and w-space as if we were the ones who designed it
…to see ships in directional and instead of cowering, head over to take them down
…to have a single monthly corporate meeting
…to kill a Rorqual 5 days into the w-space colonization effort
…to successfully ransom a ship for 1 billion ISK
…to take down and destroy a defenseless POS
…to take down and destroy a defended POS that someone else erected into our own back yard
…to participate into large capital fleet warfare
…to help destroy the ego of a large alliance such as the R&K
…to spend Valentine’s day fighting our most epic fight defending our home
…to spend Steak & BJ day self-destructing our assets and evacuating our Class 6 wormhole
…to grow our corp with valuable and trustworthy members
…to have the creator of EVE-HQ in our corp fighting and having fun alongside us
…to get QP’s brother to join EVE
…to make so many friends in the game
…to exploit what w-space has to offer us to the point that we’d grow tired of it
…to lose multiple billions in assets, ships, pride and not /emoragequit
…to make a lengthy post on how much we have achieved during the previous year

None of this would have happened if we haven’t dared to be bold!

This is our message to all new capsuleers:

Dare to be bold pilot!

Luminus Aardokay & Quivering Palm

List of Participants:

1. CrazyKinux: The Three Pillars of Wisdom
2. The Elitist: Helping the new guy/gal
3. Hands Off, My Loots: Nothing Needed
4. Rantuket: Blog Banter 16
5. EVE Opportunist: Nooby Cluey
6. Into the Unknown With Gun and Camera: EVE University
7. Zero Kelvin: We’re the young ones!
8. I am Keith Neilson: Set Your Destination
9. Prano’s Journey: Just Like the Very First Time
10. A Merry Life and a Short One: No Seriously
11. Yarrbear Tales: Nublet 101
12. A Mule In EVE: If I only knew
13. Diary of a Space Jockey: WTH did I get myself into?!
14. EVOGANDA: Why?
15. A Memoir From Space: 16th Blog Banter
16. Death’s Sweetest Kiss: Who What When Where Why How??
17. Freebooted: Beyond the Shortcuts
18. Learning to Fly: Noobing
19. Caldari Outcast: My First Blog Banter Post!
20. Roc’s Ramblings: Financial Survival
21. Diary of a Pod Pilot: Free Knowledge Inside
22. Nullsec Carebear: I could’ve been less of an idiot
23. Facepalm’s Ramblings: Something Smells Fishy
24. Kirith Darkblade: Do you wish to know more?
25. Autopilot Disabled: I’m still starting…
26. Finders & Keepers: Relax
27. Confounded Capsuleer: What have you got to loose?
28. Clan Oriana: Sixteen
29. Flashfresh: EVE Blog Banter #16
30. Rettic’s The Chronofile: You Make EVE
31. Diary of a Bored Spaceman: Past Imperfect
32. Chocolate Heaven: Known Unknowns
33. Zen and the Art of Internet Spaceship Maintenance Trust No One!
34. More to come soon…

We’d like to congratulate Alekseyev Karrde, TeaDaze and Song Li for their victories, and wish them a prosperous and productive reign. Along with them, we here at the Planet Risk Show feel victorious as well as it is more than apparent  how the CSM specials helped boost the profiles of the candidates (3 out of the 7 candidates that debated made it to the board, and Helen Highwater almost made it by ranking 10th).

However, this “victory” we feel that has been achieved comes with a certain amount of bitterness. The voter turnout was disappointing, as this time around, there were less voters than even the first elections. Furthermore almost 3% of the voters chose to push the “abstain” button in the ballot (which by design is something we find utterly stupid… declaring your abstinence by participating…).

Nevertheless, we do believe that this CSM board is capable of pushing great and useful things to CCP, especially during this troubled post Dominion time, something that will “force” more people to learn about the CSM and why it is so important.

Once again congratulations guys. We have high hopes for you!

Download Episode 10

Tracks in this Episode:

Glxblt – Everything Is Under Control (Planet Risk Intro Version)

AK Balance & Little Bitchard – The Jupiter Sound (Reefer Evil Remix)
Crankshaft – Ocean Machine
Takomo – Bombman
Discreat – Distanz
Alkama & Mo – 2L#2=2M
Rapumies – Ben and His Atari
Man With No Alias – Royal Temple Ball
AlienHand – Above the Asteroids

All background tracks composed by AlienHand and are parts of his eve-online music project. Used with permission.

Candidates, Helen Highwater, Mike Azariah, Song Li and TeaDaze presented their platform and their case and even though the decision of who made the biggest impression is yours to make, we got ourselves 4 quality candidates that put us in a four way dilemma about who deserves our precious vote.

We are glad to see that this first debate drew enough interest, players and candidates alike as it promotes the CSM concept and therefore we’ll run a series of debates and get as many candidates as possible on-air to share their views with you and give you a better image on their personalities and their platform.

Please, after listening don’t forget to vote on our poll on who shined through this Debate.

Download Episode 9

Tracks in this Episode:

Glxblt – Everything Is Under Control (Planet Risk Intro Version)
AlienHand – Dare to be Bold
lfODD & mc vocODD – World Domination
Permaband – HTFU
Luminus Aardokay – Jizz in my Pod
Quasian – Beertime X
Virt – Turbonugget
Irvin – Gamma
AlienHand – Above the Asteroids

All background tracks composed by AlienHand and are parts of his eve-online music project and Jon Hallur (CCP). Used with permission.