30 Mar 2012

A Failmail Friday

Just wanted to share this rather 'different' way of fitting out a Talos. I feel it is worthy of a wider audience.


TALOSBATTALMACHINMARK1






MB.

29 Mar 2012

The Correct Tools For The Job

A great way of maximising your potential in combat and especially in solo work and small gangs is to have the best tools available for the job. This is no real shock statement as such, it is quite obvious to all that the better your gaming platform and internet connection then quite rightly, the better your game will perform. Apart from running smoothly and minimising lag, it looks great too and whilst the visual aspect of EVE is cool there are other factors and equipment worth considering.



Gaming Mouse.

It is surprising how many people overlook the importance of a good gaming mouse. I can remember the first time I upgraded from my standard issue store mouse to a gaming mouse and it was quite an enlightening experience. For years I had thought of my mouse as just a point and click tool and I never really even considered the benefits that a good gaming mouse could bring to my gaming. It was only when I started playing EVE more and more that I realised how much quicker and smoother a gaming mouse makes your play style.

My current weapon of choice is the Roccat Kova +. I have tried 3 or 4 different brands but when I first used this mouse I was blown away by the feel and fluidity of it. As a recommendation I would advise not to order a mouse blindly over the net. Instead, make sure you visit a store and actually get a feel for the mouse in your hand. Some gaming mouses might fit comfortably for one person but be fiddly or too clunky for someone else. Try before you buy!


Gaming Pad.

It really isn't going to help your gaming now you've purchased your shiny new gaming mouse and you're using it on an old book or on your grubby desktop. A good mouse pad should be purchased with your new mouse. Currently I am using a Roccat Sense gaming pad. It is comfortable, feels smooth and optimises the performance of my mouse.


Mechanical Gaming Keyboard.

A mushy old standard keyboard just won't cut it when it comes to pvp. For one it feels horrible and also it will be less responsive to your input. In a fast-paced gaming arena where each clicking of a key could be the difference between a killmail and a lossmail it is vital to get your actions input as quickly and efficiently as possible.

But why a mechanical keyboard? A mechanical keyboard uses actual, physical switches underneath the keys to determine when you have pushed a key. Press a key, and you press its switch down. Press the switch down, and the keyboard sends a signal to the computer telling it that you pressed that key. In an instant, no pauses whatsoever.

Most ordinary keyboards are composed of a set of three plastic membranes, with rubber dome-shaped switches underneath each key. Press a key, and the rubber switch pushes through a hole in the middle membrane to connect the top and bottom membranes, which creates an electrical circuit that causes the keyboard to send the input to your rig. This kind of keyboard design is inexpensive and it doesn't give you as much tactile or audible feedback when you press a key, which can change the way you type and bog things down, especially when gaming.

Also, the 'thunking' sound from a mechanical keyboard is like music to the ears in comparison to the rubbery mess of a rubber dome keyboard. My advice would be to again pop down to your local store and bash some keys, it might not be noticeable at first to some, but after a few days of using a mechanical keyboard in EVE and for anything else for that matter you will never go back!

For reference, at the moment I am using a Razer BlackWidow keyboard.


Monitor.

Some good quality screen real estate can make for a more pleasurable viewing experience but it also makes for a better tactile approach to your gaming. A cluttered screen is bad form and the only real way to prevent this cluttered approach is to plug in a nice widescreen monitor. You don't need to go overboard by any means, something in the region of a 23" HD or LCD screen would be more than ideal.


Graphics Card.

To boost the performance of your rig and maximise your gaming experience, a top line graphics card can be more than just a visual improvement to your play time. Crisp, smooth and perfectly rendered graphics during combat is a real bonus. There is nothing worse than an old graphics card jumping or pausing when you are in a battle. There are so many different cards out there for a wide range of budgets so choosing one can be difficult. It really does boil down to what you can afford, what you want and what your machine can handle. A top range graphics card in a poorly spec'd rig is a bit like putting a 1 litre diesel engine into a Lamborghini. So choose wisely.

My current graphics card is the PNY GeForce GTX 550 Ti and it suits my machine perfectly.



I hope you found some of this information useful. It would be great to hear what other people use as their set  up and even greater if one of you tells me you pvp on your laptop. So what powers your gaming? Are there any other essentials that you can't live without when it comes to pvp and EVE gaming?




MB.

19 Mar 2012

Doughnuts & Mining Beams

Reiko Kisaragi > stop please

Reiko Kisaragi > plaes estop

Miura Bull > hello

Miura Bull > do you have the correct permit for this belt?

Reiko Kisaragi > i will give you a some ore

Miura Bull > ore? ore!? freeze! do not move! switch off all lasers

Reiko Kisaragi > 50 percent i promise u

Miura Bull > I am protector of ore, switch off your beams now!

Reiko Kisaragi > 50 percent of money that i get

Reiko Kisaragi > from selling

Miura Bull > I will need to punish this violation this time, you have refused to switch off your mining beams, justice will commence


The Thorax is halted from its crime spree by the brutal force of the law.


Miura Bull > hey I could sell you a permit ? for future mining operations?

Miura Bull > 20m isk for release of your capsule?

Reiko Kisaragi > i agree

Reiko Kisaragi > paid

Miura Bull > there you go

Miura Bull > I must uphold the laws of these asteroid fields

Reiko Kisaragi > can i ask so you undestand that

Reiko Kisaragi > my ship was destroyed? why?

Reiko Kisaragi > i wish if such thing not happen

Miura Bull > it was, would you like me to mail you an application form for a mining permit for this system?

Reiko Kisaragi > but now i need to buy a new ship & so i back here not so early

Miura Bull > sorry to hear about that

Miura Bull > we performed a ship scan on you at the gate and found no permit

Miura Bull > lowsec asteroids are protected

Miura Bull > intergalactic space heritage fields

Reiko Kisaragi > so

Reiko Kisaragi > if i pay next time i can mine?

Miura Bull > yes you can 50 million isk

Miura Bull > a pass lasts 7 days

Miura Bull > and you also receive protection from any other attackers, terms and conditions apply

Reiko Kisaragi > sounds good

Reiko Kisaragi > so

Reiko Kisaragi > i add you to my list & when i will be ready to pay for mining-i will contact with you and arrange deal?

Miura Bull > excellent

Miura Bull > we have your image on our on board cctv so no sneaking in, an agent will violate your ship without the pass I must warn you

Miura Bull > do you like doughnuts?

Reiko Kisaragi > doughunts? what

Miura Bull > yeah.... was just on my doughnut break when the call came in at the stargate

Miura Bull > hostile miner inbound, sirens and shit go WAWAWAWA I tell you what man, that dang ol CK One man just like catnip

Miura Bull > coffee went everywhere

Reiko Kisaragi > so sorry but i not understand this?

Reiko Kisaragi > can i get my eqipment back?

Miura Bull > yes sure

Miura Bull > I will first need to file and photograph the evidence in my office

Miura Bull > we will then contact you within 7 days

Miura Bull > receipt of goods via contract

Miura Bull > it is all procedure I am sure you understand

Miura Bull > serious offences like this take up a lot of paper

Reiko Kisaragi > my eng not so good-this mean that i get my eqip when i pay 7 day pass?

Miura Bull > no that is different, I will give you your equipment in 7 days

Miura Bull > we need to run a few checks, make sure no crimes have been committed with the items we recovered etc

Miura Bull > all procedure

Miura Bull > I hope you understand, we'll probably check the mining gear for fingerprints, that sort of thing, check the plates you know?

Miura Bull > we also offer courses for rehabilitation if you would be interested in such a thing?

Reiko Kisaragi > rehabiliation? what

Miura Bull > yes

Miura Bull > mining in lowsec, it's a very serious addiction

Miura Bull > we offer a course that runs next to our anti-gatecamping course

Reiko Kisaragi > soo

Reiko Kisaragi > i need to pay 50m for mining and a course? i not understand of this

Miura Bull > yes

Miura Bull > you will get a discount for any future courses too

Miura Bull > free coffee and water, toilet breaks etc

Reiko Kisaragi > so how i could protect me from other persons in this system?

Miura Bull > are included in the price

Miura Bull > we have a network of agents

Miura Bull > we will protect you, we operate in the shadows

Reiko Kisaragi > dont seems like a true to me

Miura Bull > please do get in touch when you are ready for the pass

Miura Bull > during your 7 days we will talk about the courses and weening you off

Miura Bull > it is a dark time when mining ... we understand this

Miura Bull > stay strong and we will help you and together we can fight this

Miura Bull > okay I have to leave now, reports of multiple violations in belt 3-1

Miura Bull > stay safe and abide by the law civilian o/

Reiko Kisaragi > thanks ?


--


I quickly dock up my Firetail. The hostiles on scan are showing as Stabber, Brutix, Myrmidon, Raven and Scorpion. All are showing as being from the same corporation. All have unregistered hulls projecting their names across the cluster like a bright neon beacon. We will need more punch, now where did I park that.....



Comedy tech 1 fitted Hurricane with a sensor booster tank. Oh dear. A relic from an old comedic roam, a ship that perhaps should have fallen on the wayside but somehow now still remains in one piece. Time for one last hurrah?


I undock and blast open the warp drive on the Cane. I notice that there is only one ammo type in the hold, EMP. Great. As I land in the belt the hostile ships are leaving. I manage to pinpoint them to a nearby planet. I warp in again and they scatter, in different directions. I chase the Stabber and eventually I land 10 clicks off of him. Show time.

As I begin to punch at it with my tech one guns I await the incoming blab of his friends and soon enough they all land, at different ranges. The Stabber goes down in a ball of flames. I begin working on the Myrmidon, his shield is stripped away as the two battleships close range, slowly.

The EMP rounds aren't making a dent on the armor. And I am jammed. The Scorpion misses a cycle and I lock up the Raven, the Myrmidon has left the field. Shields nearly down, not making much dent on this Raven and again I am jammed. I pull some range and make an escape as the Myrmidon lands again accompanied by the Stabber guy in another Stabber.

What a weird series of events.



MB.

16 Mar 2012

Postcards From The Edge #2

Camera drones in flight, click, click, delight.



You can almost taste the tranquillity.





Ready to rumble?




zummfff.

Shiny.

Let there be trails! (and mining beams!)


That ain't no moon. (okay it is)




MB.

The Disappearing Machariel

The Jaguar is the ship I feel most comfortable in when taking on bigger quarry, and with a nosferatu fitted in the utility high-slot I can be confident of keeping all my modules running when I need them the most, id est, if I happen to get neuted. I also feel most comfortable dealing with drones with my webifier. In fact I'd go as far as saying I feel I will have more success in the Jaguar taking on the bigger boys than I would taking on other assault frigates, at this moment in time.

More recently I managed to snag a Zealot that was out ratting. I added this to the collection of tech 2 Amarr cruisers I seem to be getting the better of every time I undock a Jag. Previously, this odd looking Sacrilege and this even quirkier looking gate-camping Curse had all fallen to the mighty Jaguar. Not to mention the usual smattering of badly fitted cruisers and battlecruisers that you stumble upon in low-sec.

So imagine my surprise when out on my roam I spot a Machariel out ratting in the wilds of a low-sec asteroid field. There would be no hesitation whatsoever, I warped in and landed the tackle, no job too big when filled with confidence. I swiftly removed all the enemy drones from space and began working on the tank, mindful that he may have alliance mates on the way, I kept an eye on the scanner.

With his shields and armor stripped it was a case of the final onslaught to bring this giant ship to its knees, a mighty crash waiting to happen. And then, you know what is going to happen don't you?

pewpew


Yes .... A self-destruct notification.

The autocannons are cooking, a race against time to the last point of hull. I check the heat status, close to 90%, but it looks like the last tiniest slither of structure is about to buckle and finally explode. It all goes quiet for a moment and then ..... The self-destruct is completed. Disbelief. It was probably ONE second away from being a killmail, it was that close. I sarcastically post up a gf in local but get no response.



Oh well.

Narzan19 scurries away in his capsule and I add this mugshot to my dartboard.




:)

MB.

4 Mar 2012

The Lord of the Rifters - Coming Soon

It began with the forging of the Great Rifters.

Three were given to the Sebiestor; immortal, wisest and fairest of all beings. Seven, to the Vherokior, great miners and craftsmen of the Minmatar regions. And nine, nine Rifters were gifted to the race of Brutor, who above all else desire power. For within these Rifters was bound the strength and the will to govern over each tech one frigate fight. But they were all of them deceived, for a new Rifter was made. In the land of Molden Heath, in the fires of Heild planet I and IV, the Dark Lord Wensley forged in secret, a master Rifter, to control all others. And into this Rifter he poured all his cruelty, his malice and his will to dominate all Rifter Guides.

One Rifter to rule them all.

One by one, the free peoples of Molden Heath and beyond fell to the power of the Rifter. But there were some who resisted. A last alliance of anti-pirates marched against the armies of Molden Heath, and on the very gates of Bosena, they fought for the freedom of the Molden Heath people. Victory was near, they even posted about it on the forums but the power of the Rifter could not be undone. It was in this moment, when all hope had faded, that the fleet of anti-pirates uncloaked a Falcon. And Wensley, enemy of the free peoples of Molden Heath, was defeated.

The Rifter passed to the anti-pirates, who had this one chance to destroy evil forever, but the hearts of anti-pirates are easily corrupted. And the Rifter of Power has a will of its own. It betrayed them, to their death. And some things that should not have been forgotten were lost. History became legend. Legend became myth. And for two and a half thousand downtimes, the Rifter passed out of all knowledge.

Until, when chance came, the Rifter ensnared another bearer. The Rifter came to the creature Nergalion, who took it deep into the heart of the Great Wildlands, and there it consumed him. The Rifter gave to Nergalion unnatural long racial ECM jam life. For five different patch updates it poisoned his fittings; and in the gloom of Nergalion's station, it waited.



             We wants it, we needs it. Must have the plex. They stole it from us. Sneaky little R1FTA's



Darkness crept back into the systems of New Eden.




Rumour grew of a shadow in the Heath, whispers of a nameless fear, and the Rifter of Power perceived. Its time had now come. It abandoned Nergalion. But then something happened that the Rifter did not intend. It was picked up by the most unlikely creature imaginable. A noob Brutor, Miura Bull, of Ammold. For the time will soon come when noobs in Rifters will shape the fortunes of all...



MB.

3 Mar 2012

Violent Intentions and the Thoughts of a Madman (part I)

Closing my eyes I glimpse tangents of atrocities past, the end result of the dogfights, the massacres at stargates and the blood that seemingly flows and tells a story in every asteroid belt I ever visited. I see the manufactured skulls of my enemies gazing straight back at me, these wild visions are haunting me. I see beautiful arch-like displays stacked like glorious trophies brought back from the battlefield.

The Angel of Death flies overhead, descends and kills, and then he goes. But he craves more and now his addiction to death and destruction is a mind-killer. No, a poison, of which the only remedy is more killing, more fuel for the machine.This is what violence does. This is what violence is. Give me more violence!

The room stank heavily of cigarettes. Dark figures moved against the pale unseen background, the darkness broken occasionally by the dark-green flicker of the monitors and the ends of lit cigarettes that glowed like little fireflies buzzing around the room. A loud boom and what sounded like a thunder roll echoed and then cracked outside. One of the Rebels rose from his seat, the light from his cigarette lighter bringing him into existence for a short moment before again he disappeared back into the darkness that snapped around him.

I broke away from my lazy daydreaming for a moment. It was time to get out of the office and execute retribution upon my enemy. Or at least die trying.



MB.