CAPSLOCK ISN'T REALLY CRUISE CONTROL FOR COOL

The last week or so has been filled with exciting happenings, some genuine tears, trolls, neat roams and general good hunting and slaughter in the space lanes.

In no particular order . . . .

The Penis Roam that was organized by Helicity Boson was probably the best novelty roam I have ever been on, the fact that x amount of pirates and other like minded souls can all get together like that and go roam and cause mischief makes me all warm inside.

The night got off to a flyer on the first undock as this Advocated Destruction battleship with carrier support melted under the wilt of heavy DPS. A good start. We then ruined the night of an unfortunate lone Vagabond pilot who was somewhat startled by the sight of the fleet that awaited him after jumping into us, he wobbled about and then fell with ease, some pilots complaining they didn't make the mail, such was the brutal deliverance of mega-phallic DPS levels.

The night was eventually over for me when my Thorax popped under sustained fire, but before this demise I was enjoying myself in this epic battle which was fast and furious, electric was running through my veins as we laid down the pain.

Also worth mentioning perhaps was the Providence we almost snagged on the gate, he warped off in deep armour having logged off after presumably realising he was perhaps going to run into trouble after spotting the local count or after intel reports, I'm not quite sure on this and perhaps someone could clear that up? Anyway,the order was given for some of the fleet to jump through in case the Providence made it back to the gate, at this point we didn't realise he had in fact logged sometime before, in hindsight a bubble on the gate would have snagged us a tasty freighter kill. I think?

Camera drones managed to record some archive footage from the roam. I'd also like to thank Helicity for organizing this event and Jones Bones the FC for Fc'in it, oddly enough. Looking forward to the next novelty roam, that is for sure.

A sight to behold - Thorax fleet in formation.

Providence freighter comes under attack on a stargate.

Almost.

I decided to set up my own novelty trolling/ransom channel, just for the lol factor - I don't actually do much ransoming these days as the demand for frozen corpses is much higher.


EVE System > Channel MOTD: DUE TO RECENT ACTS OF VIOLENCE AGAINST AN MCDU AGENT - YOUR CORPSE HAS BEEN CHOSEN AS A POTENTIAL DONOR. The mistreatment of donated bodies is not uncommon. The Universal Anatomical Gifts Act governs the donation of bodies for dissection, research, clone production and transplantation throughout New Eden, but dead people can't file a complaint and many bodies get lost in transit.IF YOU WISH TO OPT OUT THEN RIGHT CLICK ON THE AGENT LISTED BELOW AND GIVE THE REQUESTED SOME OF MONIES WHEN PROMPTED. WE OPERATE ON A CODE OF HONOR AND WILL SET FREE THOSE WHO PAY PROMPTLY.UNFORTUNATELY WE ARE NOT ABLE TO DISCUSS COMPLAINTS OR CONCERNS ON VENTS AS OUR MUM AND DAD ARE SLEEPING AND WE ARE MOST TIMES MEANT TO BE SLEEPING AS WE PROB HAVE SCHOOL IN MORNING.MIURA BULL AGED 15 AND ********* ********** AGED 16 NEARLY 17.THANKYOUCOMEAGAIN!!!


Got some interesting bites.

After swiftly disposing of this pro-looking Catalyst.


[2011.02.08 21:45:10 ] Diaga McCabe > What.
[ 2011.02.08 21:45:14 ] Miura Bull > HALLO
[ 2011.02.08 21:45:26 ] Miura Bull > 5 million isk will release your pod
[ 2011.02.08 21:45:43 ] Diaga McCabe > You think I care about my pod?
[ 2011.02.08 21:45:52 ] Diaga McCabe > loser

This was escalated after I sent him the following trollmail.

From: Miura Bull
Sent: 2011.02.08 21:49
To: Diaga McCabe,

WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU JUST SAY?

_ _ _ 

From: Diaga McCabe
Sent: 2011.02.08 21:50
To: Miura Bull,

Since you didnt hear me, what I sad was, your a Loser.

L-o-s-e-r. Write it down so you dont forget :)
Fail pirate. Fucking dicks alwats in here all day.

kthnxbai

_ _ _

Let the games begin :)

_ _ _

Re: Re: YOU
From: Miura Bull
Sent: 2011.02.08 21:52
To: Diaga McCabe,

I AM THE ONE WITH YOUR CORPSE AND I AM STRICT ANTI-PIRATES WE DO NOT CONDONE PIRACY THANKYOU

_ _ _

From: Diaga McCabe
Sent: 2011.02.08 21:54
To: Miura Bull,

lol thats why your out hunting smaller ships huh?

Ok, I'm sure. Big ole tough pirate you, bet you feel so badass now huh! how cute XD dick

_ _ _

From: Miura Bull
Sent: 2011.02.08 21:56
To: Diaga McCabe,

YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE TO ANSWER FOR THIS , YOU DID NOT HAVE A BELT PASS . . AND FOR YOUR NOTES A CTALYST IS A BIGGER SHIP THAN MY FRIGATE BOAT!

THIS IS NOT OVER. I CAN MAKE WAR ON ALL YOUR BOATS SHOULD YOU WISH TO DIS-HONOUR ANTI-PIRATES CODES

_ _ _

From: Diaga McCabe
Sent: 2011.02.08 21:58
To: Miura Bull,

lol. CAPSLOCK ISNT REALLY CRUISE CONTROL FOR COOl, just so your aware. Dick.

And I have no idea what your talking about, but be assured I am disregarding everything you say. I dont listen to idiots, are you insane or something?
Done wasting my time with you kiddy. Bye now.

_ _ _

From: Miura Bull
Sent: 2011.02.08 22:02
To: Diaga McCabe,

DO YOU NOT REALIZE WHO YOU ARE CALLING A KIDDY? I AM 15 AND NOT A KID! IF I WAS YOU I WOULD SHUT UP OR I WILL GET MY BROTHER WHO IS NEARLY 17 TO LOG ON AND HE HAS MORE SKILLZ THAN ME ND HE FLIES A TENGUI BOAT.

FINAL WARNING

_ _ _

From: Diaga McCabe
Sent: 2011.02.08 22:30
To: Miura Bull,

You moron.. Final warning? Final warning for what? You cant do shit, so shut your mouth little kid.

_ _ _

From: Miura Bull
Sent: 2011.02.08 22:35
To: Diaga McCabe,

IS THAT YOUR BEST COMEBACK OH MY. I AM LAUGHING SO MUCH. I AM ALSO LAUGHING SO MUCH AT YOUR FIT OMG WHEN MY BROTHER FINISHES PLAYING CALL OF DUTY I AM GOING TO SHOW IT HIM TOO.

GOT TO GO NOW COS SCHOOL IN MORNING. LIKE.

BYE DOUCHE.

O7

_ _ _

From: Diaga McCabe
Sent: 2011.02.08 22:40
To: Miura Bull,

lol.. you really are an idiot, arent you, a first class fucking prickstain. I didn't "combac" anything, I dont argue with dumb little kids. I only pointed out the truth and the truth is you are lame ass kid who thinks it is cool to act all big cos they have played this game for longer than the avergae new guy, it sucks it really sucks.
And lulz that your so lame you need to "show your brother".. So your saying he is as much a loser as you are that this game is important to him? OMG LOOK AT THIS RETARD BROTHER WHILE I TYPE IN ALL CAPS!!


Your a chump, face it. I am and will always be better then you XD

And no, I dont take this game seriously, so trying to comment on my fits just makes you look incredibly stipid it just makes you look more like a loser :)

---

He then logged off.

Looks like he put me in my place huh? I couldn't stop laughing at this exchange of mails, it was definitely a side splitting occasion and the guy just didn't 'get it' one bit. Ahh, lovely.

During this exchange of mails I also engaged conversation with another happy customer.

[ 2011.02.08 21:58:28 ] Towken Horben > lmao nice thing
[ 2011.02.08 21:58:32 ] Miura Bull > WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?!?!
[ 2011.02.08 21:58:32 ] Towken Horben > lemme just finish reading it
[ 2011.02.08 21:58:38 ] Miura Bull > PAY ME ISK NOW I AM ANTIPIRATES
[ 2011.02.08 21:58:45 ] Miura Bull > LOL
[ 2011.02.08 21:59:07 ] Towken Horben > ok so when did i apparently become a pirate?
[ 2011.02.08 21:59:13 ] Miura Bull > YOU HAVE TEN SECONDS TO CROSS PALM WITH SILVER
[ 2011.02.08 21:59:27 ] Miura Bull > WHEN YOU HELD THESERPENTIS TO RANSOM IN THE BELTS
[ 2011.02.08 21:59:38 ] Towken Horben > lol the npcs..
[ 2011.02.08 21:59:41 ] Miura Bull > IS THE POD WORTH SAVING?
[ 2011.02.08 21:59:54 ] Towken Horben > this account is like 4 days old
[ 2011.02.08 21:59:57 ] Towken Horben > i don't even have 10mil
[ 2011.02.08 22:00:07 ] Miura Bull > THE SERPENTIS HAVE SPOKEN BE GONE NOW
[ 2011.02.08 22:00:32 ] Miura Bull > Corpse
[ 2011.02.08 22:00:37 ] Towken Horben > ty
[ 2011.02.08 22:00:45 ] Towken Horben > now i don't have to fly back
[ 2011.02.08 22:00:45 ] Saftsuze > YAY!!
[ 2011.02.08 22:01:11 ] Miura Bull > good sport, have a nice day o7
[ 2011.02.08 22:01:17 ] Towken Horben > buy
[ 2011.02.08 22:01:20 ] Towken Horben > bye*

Good humoured fun and no hate mail. I think this guy 'got it'.

Not so good humoured from one angry dude who took a dislike to the RANSM way of Drake dismantling.

From: Melody StarTears
Sent: 2011.02.13 23:24
To: Wensley,

fucking cum dring cock pig fucking whore.


From: Melody StarTears
Sent: 2011.02.13 23:29
To: Ariartus,


fuck you cum drinking pig fucking butt pirate go back to drink your corp buddies fucking cum you fucking suck holes



__ We Lol'd. __


Finally, last night I went on another great Wensley Roam. You can read all about it by clicking on this link right here.

The Flight of the Hurricane.

MB.

The Mining Hurricane

The tiny Rifter landed right on top of the huge hull of the battlecruiser and I couldn't quite believe my eyes as the orange glow of a single mining laser lit up the darkness. I landed a scrambler right onto the beast as my autocannons began to spool up before spitting hot shells of EMP projectiles at its shields. The fight was on.

Just a few moments earlier I was just another passing traffic statistic, making my way down to somewhere else, always in a hurry, you know how it works. The Hurricane flashed up as I blipped my 360 degree scanner across the solar system mid-warp. The pilot hadn't renamed his ship and that triggered the alarm bells. However, further checks revealed this pilot was well over two years into his role as a capsuleer and surely must know a thing or two about fitting up his ships by now? As I aligned to his belt I started to sow a seed of doubt in my thought process, this must be a trap! Time seemed to pause as I dawdled for a moment, should I carry on with my journey or investigate?

Ahh what the hell! WARP DRIVE ACTIVE.


Back to the action . . . .


The Hurricane crew seemed to be oblivious to the fact that I was orbiting their ship and hitting its shields with the finest ammunition the Republic Fleet has ever produced, maybe they were all busy in the cargohold sorting out the huge chunks of Kernite that were being loaded into the ship, maybe the Captain was sleeping? Ratatat tat, boom, chuk chuk boom. My autocannons were singing as my Rifter nimbly danced a merry jig through the asteroid field. At this point I realised the Hurricane was fighting with a belt rat that had become angry with the theft of local ores. Then the gunnery crews sprung into life and a myriad of different projectile fire and missiles came my way . . . and went straight by and fizzled away in the distance. Perhaps the crew were merry on wine I thought to myself.

Red Alert - All crews to Gunnery posts - Hostile Rifter engaged.

Hornet drones now began to chase me down as the Hurricane's armour plating began to strip away from the hull. At first I ignored the drones and injected some heat to my afterburner and set for a wider orbit in the hope of evading the pesky little biters, before again switching back to a tighter orbit. I didn't return any fire to the drones because to be honest the damage from them was minimal at best. However, things were about to get ugly.

COLLISION IMMINENT - DIVERT COURSE NOW.

I had managed to slam my Rifter right into one of the asteroids, the whole ship shook and the hull rattled as the drones set upon my shields like an angry pack of hungry dogs. Manoeuvring away from the lump of rock and re-establishing my orbit I began to lock up and take aim at the drones, all the time keeping point on the battlecruiser. One by one they began to pop like flies being drawn to a zapping blue light. Unfortunately at this exact moment in time a stray mining beam laser ripped right through the core of my ship turning the console into a black darkness, alarms began to ring as fragments of rock destined for the cargohold of the bigger ship smashed into my frigate hull. I had to bail and bail I did, warping away with my structure barely still in one piece. I dropped out of warp at a nearby planet as huge plumes of smoke and fire could be seen trailing my ship, I then docked at the station to patch up, the fight seemingly over now.


Upon undocking I took a broadside from the station's gun batteries as I entered warp back to the belt with GCC in the vain hope that the mining nuisance was still there. My shields were okay and my ship was now fully repaired and stable. Dropping out of warp I landed some 30km off of the Hurricane and made my way to the lumbering giant with overheated afterburner to make up the distance all the time hoping that he didn't enter warp and make for his safety. The mining lasers were still ripping up the rocks as I landed my scrambler for round two, my enemy was now down to a single drone but oddly enough he didn't choose to sic it upon me this time around. The end of the gloriously kitted out Hurricane was now inevitable but for one moment of madness where somehow I accidentally managed to let him out of scrambler range and he started to align some 16km off of me, I once again overheated my afterburner as I closed range and with a sigh of relief landed the scram once again. At the same time I noticed that I had completely fried the throttle on the afterburner, as the Hurricane entered structure my ship slowed and I did my best to keep as close to the battlecruiser hull as possible until it eventually succumbed to the blitz of fire that was upon it.

The killmail made me smile.

:)

MB.

The Solo Combat Pilot's Guide to Good Roaming #2

Next up in my series of roaming guides takes us from the fabled system of Old Man Star and down into Verge Vendor to the small arena-style-combat system of Ouelletta. The roam is relatively small, consisting of nine main systems that we will be exploring as well as three separate off-shoot systems that are always worth a peek into. We will be traversing space that is frequented by a mix of pirates, mission runners, faction warfare pilots and the untrained ratter.

So, without further delay, jump into your frigates, hit that undock button and warm up your warp scramblers!


Old Man Star - Ouelletta 'Eye-patches & War Medals' 

Recommended ship type - Frigate hull.

System 1 - Old Man Star 0.3

For most capsuleers the system of Old Man Star needs little introduction. A system steeped in history and intrigue it draws pilots towards it like a beacon of glorious light. Most are drawn towards the promise of combat and the opportunity to make their fortune and to establish themselves as a name in a world of battered ship hulls and cut-throats. Others are brought here in the ongoing war between the Gallente and Caldari nations, to fight for their Militia in great fleets of military prowess. Some who come here perhaps overlook these factors and underestimate the volatility of Old Man Star. It can be volatile.

The system was formerly known as Ouperia, the rich history of how it got its name can be found here and is well worth a read.

Old Man Star borders the high-security system of Villore, traffic is usually heavy and for those wishing to test their mettle, should find an abundance of targets to tussle with. The system has 13 asteroid belts in various clusters, scanning from your safe near the star you will be able to monitor the asteroid belts in the V, VI, VII, VIII and IX cluster.


The other belts to check are in the X and XI clusters. Warping between safe spots in these clusters should give you an overall idea of the targets available to you and the targets worth avoiding. It is also worth looking out for targets in the faction warfare complexes that might spawn during your stay in the system, care should be taken though as faction warfare pilots will more than likely have wingmen close by.

Blob you say?

The system has a reputation as a blobbing hot-spot when the militias hit town, however this has been diluted somewhat recently as the war moves to pastures new, further afield. Numbers in the system can vary depending on the time of day and I find a good time to hunt in Old Man Star is when numbers are hovering around the 10-15 number. I think a fair average at the moment would be somewhere around the 20 point. Recently it has been reported that numbers can drop to around 5 or 6 as the system hits its off-peak times. This shouldn't discourage the hunter though, you should always be able to find a fight in Old Man Star.

The system has two stations and the market is generally poor, even for ammunitions and drones. Both stations do have repair facilities and the Senate Bureau has medical facilities available, however, it is not usually a good idea to dock up in Old Man Star as you might find yourself being camped in, emergency repairs only as a last resort.

System 2 - Ladistier 0.3

Ladistier is a system that is usually low on active numbers and I find that it rarely peaks above 10 at the times of day that I pass through its dark skies. It does have a lot of traffic though and those in here are probably either coming or going to and from Old Man Star or docked in the luxurious surroundings of the President Bureau which offers a medical service and repair shop.

Exploring the 16 belts in the system or poking around in any complexes that are active may attract the interest of passing ships but I wouldn't spend too long in here searching for the fight.

System 3 - Vifrevaert 0.4 (off-shoot system)

A high-sec bordering system just off of Ladistier and Allamotte, it is always worth having a look in here for targets, numbers are usually low, however, it has 13 belts that you can investigate should somebody be home. There is no station in this system.

After you have finished in here it is back into Ladistier and then onwards to . . . .

System 4 - Aeschee 0.2

Aeschee has always been a magnet for the mission running Capsuleer, the Sisters of Eve station in the system being one of the main reasons. These days the system usually has dedicated mission runners who live here permanently and earn their fortunes largely unopposed but for maybe a few surprise raids from local pirates. It is always worth checking the belts though as ratters can usually be left undetected by the mission runners who go about their business unaware.

16 belts to explore, including an ice field and two stations that offer good facilities including repair shops and medical bays. Not always a good idea to dock up for long periods in here though as the locals could camp you in for an easy kill.

Average pilots in space varies between 15-25 at times though it can be a busy system for passing traffic.

System 5 - Lisbaetanne 0.4 (off-shoot system)

This system can be a good place for hunting down ratters who have jumped in from its high-sec border systems. However, it is also worth noting that because of this the system has also become an attractive base for notorious pirate types. You might get lucky and be one of a few in the system during a quiet period. If you are, keep the scanner going and warp on in for any kills should anything show up in the belts.

The four stations in the system offer all the facilities you will need although the market is generally poor, unless you are shopping for skill books, in which case the Center for Advanced Studies School should provide you with what you need.

A quick jump back into Aeschee and it is onto another off-shoot system . . .

System 6 - Adirain 0.4 (off-shoot system)

Two high-sec borders make for a system that can at times be target-rich, ratters in belts and mission runners frequent this system, admittedly perhaps not quite as often as once upon a time. This system used to be a slaughter house and perhaps people become wise to such systems and after a time they do stop coming. However, a quick warp around the many belts should give you an idea as to whether or not blood will be spilled. Hovering around the IV cluster should see the main areas of activity covered just nice. This is still one of my favourite systems, so watch out for those none renamed frigates, destroyers and cruisers on scan! A real cat and mouse chase kind of system.

The two stations in the system offer minimal facilities and a generally poor market. The CBD Corporation Storage offering a repair facility. 

Moving back towards Aeschee after hopefully snagging a few kills in Adirain should bring you nicely to . . .

System 7 - Jovainnon 0.3

Our first system in the Verge Vendor region, Jovainnon is usually a quiet system, nobody of note actually lives in this system and traffic is usually just passing through on its way to more extrovert places. It is always worth checking out the belts and any plexes that are active though just in case.

Both of the Federal Freight Storage stations offer repair facilities but little else.

System 8 - Hevrice 0.4

Hevrice can be a dangerous place, it has a long history as a home to piracy. Currently it is the home turf of The Tuskers pirate corporation and before that Ministry of Destruction called Hevrice home. It has a high-sec border which generates traffic of various quality - mission runners, ratters and people generally taking short cuts find themselves as possible targets in the wild asteroid belts and space lanes of Hevrice.

14 asteroid belts spread over quite a large system makes for good hunting. It might be worth noting that should you linger in here for long periods the local pirate community will probably come out hunting you so be careful if they are home. You can be guaranteed a good fair fight in here though, if you are prowling in a Rifter you can probably expect another frigate to come your way, they won't blob you senseless.

Top station, Hevrice 5 - Federal Freight Storage is the Tusker base and I wouldn't really advise docking in here. Repair facilities are available in the bottom station should you need to patch up.

System 9 - Muetralle 0.2

A station-less system that nothing much ever happens in from my experience. It rarely has any activity in its 5 asteroid belts and the only traffic in here is likely to be passing through. Your best bet for a fight might be to snag a flashy red frigate on a gate. Even then, that can be a highly dangerous pastime.

System 10 - Costolle 0.2

Costolle has 12 asteroid belts including one ice field, combine this with the low security rating of the system and it can be an attractive system for ratters and miners. In reality it is never highly populated, if you do find people are active in the system then warp around and hope for a juicy target.

The two stations offer excellent repair and medical facilities and the medical bays are often frequented by nearby pirate communities. A wander around the clone vats makes for an interesting spectacle should you find yourself bored one evening.

Clones!

System 11 - Melmaniel 0.3

Four stations and a good number of asteroid belts but again a quiet part of the neighbourhood. Numbers remain low for most parts of the day. Again, should you find the system is active then warp around and engage anything you feel is fit for a fight.

Traffic in the system is usually passing through, with Murethand and onwards to the warfare lands of Black Rise a probable destination. 

The stations offer repair facilities but there is no medical service in Melmaniel. The market is usually poor.

System 12 - Ouelletta 0.4

Our final system. A small and compact system where everything is on scan from any point in space makes for a system of no hiding and plenty of opportunity for fights. The high-sec border brings in traffic from the Gallente homelands and more often than not opportunistic ratters and miners are attracted by the chance of bounties and cargo holds full of rare ores. In reality, you are going to kill them. Hang around in here and hopefully you will be able to hunt down the unprepared or engineer a fight with somebody of similar skill to yourself. You will get a fight in here eventually. I must have lost count of how many none renamed ships I have chased around in here, this is another one of my favourite hunting systems. In fact, as I type this very sentence I have just finished slaying this unfortunate soul.

This system used to be home to elements of various different pirate organisations and traces of them still appear on some occasions. Back to Yarrr still has its headquarters based here.

The three stations offer excellent facilities as expected, medical and repair facilities are there should you need them. As with any system of this ilk I wouldn't advise spending too much time docked up in stations should the system be busy. Numbers in here average around the 10 mark but it can get busier during peak periods.

At the end of your roam, those whose security status permits can jump off into the high-sec system of Jufvitte, those of negative status can continue onwards down into Placid or trace back towards Essence or you could even make use of a jump clone service in one of the medical bays and head on home the fast way.

Happy hunting!

MB.

Fireball Rifter Squadron (part I)

Five Glorious Rifters named Fireball. Five hastily put together dual-repping Rifters made up from the most part, bits of spare loot and reconditioned parts-bin modules that some second-rate repair man has soldered back together with his magic plasma soldering wand. Five platinum insurance deals to make for one happy insurance broker.

I fully expect these Rifters to die a glorious death, each and every one of them will be ripped into fragments of rust and heat, warped metal that would no longer resemble the ship it once was. I just hope that I can drag a few ships down into the junk yard with me as we go kicking and screaming, hulls on fire. No holds barred.

I had hoped that this experiment wouldn't take too long, I wanted to undock, get into fights and then write about my adventures and failings. It didn't quite work out that way and I will be splitting the stories into 5 separate posts. For the most part of two hours I sat in asteroid belts, watched as people warped in at range and then warped off. I chased down targets in belts that ran off and basically got quite frustrated at the lack of action I had in the hours I was out in space.

A tasty looking Thrasher and a Rifter that were still with their original owners names plastered across their hulls encouraged me to pop a Standard Exile as I warped in head first, reppers overheated, guns warming nicely ready for the onslaught. On landing at the belt the two ships were already in warp out of there, I caught a glance of them heading off to the high-sec out-gate. No fun to be had here and as I regained my senses from the sudden rush of the booster that I had just injected into my brain, I realised that I had took a tracking penalty for my troubles, lame.

Over in Gulmorogod I chanced upon a Jaguar pilot ratting in one of the belts, there were a good five or six in local but I decided on blasting on in and introducing myself in the only way I knew how - pleased to meet you sir, here's a 200mm autocannon, take that- bam (the rush from the booster had hazed my thoughts somewhat). I landed right on top of the Jaguar and began taking chunks out of his shield. I say chunks, but really I mean little nibbles - like a mouse nibbling on a block of cheese that was a bit too big for it perhaps.

I was trying to keep some range the best I could, after all this tracking penalty wasn't ideal. It seemed like my own shields disappeared in an instant as my overheated dual reppers kicked into life as hot as hell nano-assemblers raced to patch up the holes that were fast appearing in my ships armour. Slowly bits of shield from the Jaguar began to weaken, very slowly, but the incoming damage was being tanked quite well. As my capacitor reserves dropped to almost empty I fired up my capacitor booster and injected some much needed life into the heart of my ship and then I began the rep cycles again, the reppers now in full flow with not much time in between to rest. I was now confident that careful capacitor, range and overheat management would bring this Jaguar to its knees. I was wrong . . . . .

Right on top of me landed an Enyo, a mate of the Jaguar pilot perhaps? Most certainly a party pooper! The Enyo took a dislike to my frigate and as blaster fire rained in on the now damaged hull my reppers just couldn't cope with the multiple damage and it was a quick death for Fireball 1. A last glance at the Jaguar saw it just enter armour, if it wasn't for the Enyo I was pretty sure it would have resulted in a victory.  It would have been a close call, for sure.

In the ensuing mayhem my escape systems decided to freeze and my low-grade snake powered clone was fried to a pulp in the harsh blackness of space. As I woke in the medical centre in Molden Heath I swilled on the cup of water by the side of my cloning table, jumped up, shrugged and made my way over to my lockers where I had a new pair of black aviator shades waiting for me.

Stats:

Number of Ships Killed - 0
Number of pills popped - 1
Penalties from drug use - 1 (tracking)
Headaches Induced - 1
Number of ships that ran away - Lost count.
Expensive clones lost - 1
Ship Lifespan - approx 2 hours.
Number of Exotic Dancers Killed - 1
Number of Exotic Dancers Escaped - 1 (missing in action)
Tins of Long-Limb Roes Lost - Epic proportions, the wealthy elite express anger and outrage at the waste.

Here's hoping for more luck in part II. Stay tuned.

MB.

Bloodstained Claw

Hadozeko Solar System.
Tiat Constellation.
Metropolis.

The routine journey back to Molden Heath was interrupted as a Catalyst destroyer briefly blipped onto the directional scanner before disappearing out of sight. I had just enough time to notice that the ship had indeed not been renamed and was displaying the name of its pilot for all to see. As I engaged my warp thrusters and made my way to the centre of the system I ran a quick check through the local solar system data.

Three pilots all belonging to the same corporation, the destroyer pilot was only a couple of weeks into his life as a capsuleer - the other two, not so young. I ran another directional scan and my attention was diverted to a nearby asteroid belt.

Catalyst - Stabber - Cyclone at 5 degrees.


The adrenaline flow that comes before every fight seemed to kick into overdrive right about now, the data in my head that I was streaming, sifting, sorting, flowed into my veins and mixed with the endorphins coursing through me. The buzz was present more so than any other recent fight I could remember and it hadn't even started yet!

As my warp engines powered down and I landed in the asteroids I immediately locked up the Catalyst and began to take damage from the Cyclone and the Stabber as I manoeuvred my nimble frigate into a comfortable range. The Catalyst went down without much fight and I switched my attention to the Stabber. The cruiser was buckling as my autocannons ripped into its shields and armour, at the same time it became clear that I too was now taking some heavy damage. Alarms began shrieking loudly as bits of interceptor hull began to melt and fold under the weight of the incoming fire and the flight of drones that I was desperately trying to shake off.

I burnt away to re-assess the situation, streaking away in the blue-grey skies like a dart, still spitting ammunition at the Stabber which was now also in hull, hoping that it would give up the fight. Then the drones came again and I made the decision to get out, my overheated guns straining under the pressure of the injected heat flow to them, the coolant desperately trying to hold back an impending module failure.

As my ship kicked into life and left the field my whole body shook with intensity as the hormones began to settle again and I took a deep mouthful of pod fluid that went straight down into my lungs. My ship was on fire as I sat in a safe spot with my GCC.

___

Evaluating the engagement whilst docked up for repairs it is clear that the killmail generated perhaps does not tell the true story of the fight. The adrenaline flow was intense, evading drone fire and trying to finish off the Stabber before my own ship exploded all the time trying to carefully manage range and over-heated modules. Great fights like this don't come along all too often and when you do get them it is best to saviour the moment.

:)

MB.

The Solo Combat Pilot's Guide to Good Roaming #1

Over the next few months I will be writing a series of roaming guides which are loosely based on my solo roams in and around the many different regions of New Eden. There's not many places on the starmap that I haven't visited and I hope that these guides will inspire you to follow in my footsteps! Some of the guides will be epic roams that span hundreds of systems and some will contain only a few 'pocket' systems. It will be a nice mixed bag of goodies.

The guides are geared towards the solo combat pilot, of course, there's nothing to stop you forming up a small gang and pillaging the space-lanes as a blood-thirsty group, should you wish.

Frigates are always the preferred space vessel unless stated otherwise. It is also worth noting that as a combat pilot with a security status of -10, it might not be to your tastes if you have a fear of that place called 'low-sec'. On the contrary, I hope these guides encourage new players to break out of the shackles of high-security space and explore the vastness of New Eden's wild-lands.

___________________________

First up. . . .

Amamake Town & District.

This is a short roam, a total of eight low-sec systems to explore and includes one high-security bridging system, therefore frigates or a nano-cruiser are advised for the route.

System 1 - Bosboger 0.3
 
Bosboger is three high-sec jumps from Rens - the main market hub of the Heimatar region. With that in mind, this is a great starting place for the novice Rifter (or any other frigate for that matter) pilot who is about to embark on his/hers first low-sec adventures.

Jumping into Bosboger from Dammalin should be relatively risk free, it is rarely a camped gate. However, it has been known in the past to have the lone opportunist battlecruiser ready to gank the odd hauler who fancies his chance of a short dash to re-stock the local markets, you should be safe enough in your nimble frigate.

There are twenty-six asteroid belts to explore, Bosboger is quite a large system and the first cluster you should scan as you sit cloaked on the gate is the VI cluster. If you are lucky and something pops up on scan you can be in warp and landing on top of your target before he even knows what day it is. After the VI cluster it is time to warp to the central cluster, initiate warp to the star and make a bookmark before you land. Warp to your bookmark and scan . . . (sorry, you obviously knew that already, right?)

From your star safe you will pick up the I, III, IV and V clusters and normally any faction warfare facilities that are active will usually be in this central cluster, scan these too for juicy prey. It is worth noting that you will pick up a lot of ships that permanently reside in the moon bases in here. You should memorise these ship names and ignore them, kind of difficult at first but once you visit the system a few times you will remember them.

Next up you can warp to the VII cluster where there are nine belts and then on towards the VIII and X belts, only two belts here but you never know what is lurking in these outer belts.

I find that Bosboger can sometimes be a very good hunting system. It is attractive to ratters straying in from the safety of high-sec for the low-sec bounties and I've even had plenty of mining barges fall to my auto-cannons in this system. The number of pilots in system can vary from just two or three to an average of about seven and can peak at around fifteen in the busier periods of the day. It rarely gets any busier than that and if you do see a higher total it could well mean a gang is active in the system.

There are two stations in Bosboger. The Republic Security Services Assembly Plant and a Quafe Company Factory. Both have repair facilities, neither have medical bays. Market facilities are minimal, you may find the ammunition you need is in stock but other than that I wouldn't hope for much.

System 2 - Lulm 0.3

Lulm is a small system and once you jump in from Bosboger you should know from scanning cloaked at the gate whether or not you may be able to get a fight. There are six asteroid belts situated in two clusters and there is also an Angel Creo-Corp Mining 2/10 site that attracts the attention of frigates like a blue-light does flies. If you get lucky warp on in and zap away.

Of the three stations in the system, The Quafe Company Factory has repair facilities and both the Tribal Liberation Force Logistic Support and the Poteque Pharmaceuticals Biotech Production have medical facilities, however the Poteque base does not have a repair facility. The market in here is generally stagnant, again maybe ammo and drones at a push.

The system rarely peaks above five or six members. With this we move on towards our next sytem . . .

System 3 - Gulmorogod 0.4

Gulmorogod is a system that I generally find to be quiet at most times of the day and rarely do I get fights in here on a regular basis, you might get lucky though, concentrate on scans from the IV cluster and X cluster. The chances of finding a fight can also be heightened at the Abandoned Battlefield and the Abandoned Mining Colony which are both in scan range from the star.

The four stations in the system offer up a good mix of services including repair and medical bays, the market in here is sometimes surprisingly quite good, I sometimes find everything but for a few parts needed for fitting a Rifter in here.

Moving on . . . .

System 4 - Amamake 0.4

What can be said about Amamake? Possibly one of the most famous pirate haunts of New Eden, home to many a man in hiding, men seeking their fortune, the brave, the stupid, the blobs, the cloakies . . . they all reside or pass in here. Just nine asteroid belts, but one of them - asteroid belt III-I is infamous for its ability to garner a fight by just sitting in there for any period of time. Be warned though, I wouldn't recommend it when numbers are high, that guy in his Thrasher usually has his Falcon or Rapier buddies cloaked nearby - that odd looking battlecruiser usually has a fleet hiding behind a gate, you get the picture.

There are lots and lots of stations in Amamake. Pator Tech School is often camped and should be on your avoidance list. The top station is also worth avoiding for obvious reasons, it is home to the local pirate community. If you have to dock up then have a look for one with minimal facilities. The market in Amamake can be good at times and you should be able to fit up a ship as a last resort. However, it is best not to linger in the stations for too long.

Numbers in here can vary wildly. Some say the best time to hunt in Amamake is when local is steady at around 10-15 pilots with just a few frigates on scan. This is rare and usually happens just after downtime. It makes for a good small frigate arena though, if you get lucky and find yourself active during an Amamake 'slow' period make the most of it, hunt down your prey and have fun. However, when it is busy, and it does get busy - sometimes 50+ to 80+ members or more can make for a scary place, stargates can become a hazard and just a quick blip on the 360 degree scan can reveal a frightening amount of ships. If that's the case it is time to move on . . . .

System 5 - Siseide 0.3

Siseide is usually a system that people just pass through on their way to bigger and better places, it is a junction to the various faction warfare systems nearby but that shouldn't put you off hunting in here. I find that it is occasionally a very good place to find a 1 v 1 with another frigate pilot, usually idling in the top belt or hopping between the belts in the VII cluster can be fruitful. Chance your arm and get lucky!

The three stations in here offer a good mix of repair and medical facilities but the market is pretty much basic. After having a play in here it is time to move on . . . .

System 6 - Egghelende 0.4

Egghelende is one of my favourite hunting systems. Depending on the time of day sometimes you can find around five people in here and on the busy periods anything up to thirty and above . . . 

It is sometimes frequented by mission runners so a probing alt might be useful, but what makes this system come alive is the amount of novice ratters who find they are drawn to its asteroid belts. It is one of the most frequented low-sec ratting systems and it is no surprise that it is also home to some pretty evil looking pirate corporations. Don't let that put you off though as they aren't always home/active. I've had plenty of kill streaks in here when it seems like ratters are throwing their ships at me. Enjoy but be alert for probes if you are using safes often to hunt, you might easily become the hunted!

The system is split into two main scanning clusters. A scan from somewhere around planet IV will reveal a good scope for all of the belts in the first half of the system, including the fabled top belt. The next scanning spot should be around the VII cluster, quick warps between the two should get you some nice kills over time.

There are five stations in Egghelende with good services, the University station is a good low-sec shopping stop-off for skill books, it can sometimes be camped, as you might expect. The market is pretty decent for some commodities but there aren't many ships available in here.

Sometimes the high-sec out-gates are heavily camped but that shouldn't be of any concern unless you go poking your nose into their business. Which I wouldn't advise you do.

System 7 - Aliette 0.4

Aliette is a backwater system that rarely attracts the crowds of Egghelende, numbers rarely exceed the ten mark and in fact you are more likely to find yourself alone more often than not. However, there are times when you will find somebody who has got too accustomed to the quietness of this system and if you sneak up on them just right you should be able to ruin their day quite easily.

The two stations offer repair facilities but there are no medical bays and the market is poor.

If there are people active in system and you can't find them in one of the eleven asteroid belts then use your system scanner to check for targets in the Serpentis hubs that often show up in here.


Moving on. . .

System 8 - Stegette 0.5 *HIGH-SECURITY*

This is the system where if you are flashy you don't want to see a gang of interceptors waiting for you upon jumping in. Blast through the system and make your way to . . .

System 9 - Fasse 0.4

The final system on the route is a system with no stations, if you see pilots in local in here the chances of them being active in space are pretty much high, unless they are in a pos, in which case, try and draw them out for a fight. Warp around, scan or just hit the belts in random fashion with all guns blazing - if you've made it this far without even a single fight to count then I'd suggest you were very unlucky.

I usually find this is a quiet system and is usually nice to chill in after your roam, wait for the ratters to come to you if you wish, you'll be surprised how many people randomly warp to top belt. Eager for more? You could repeat back on yourself or you could head on out into The Bleak Lands and beyond . . . but that's for another guide.


Happy hunting!


MB.

Jaguar 199

The Jaguar has an exceptionally powerful bite, even relative to other big cats. This allows it to pierce the shells of armoured reptiles and to employ a rather unusual killing method: it bites directly through the skull of prey between the ears to deliver a fatal bite to the brain.

As of writing, this rather mirthful looking Thorax became kill number 199 whilst at the controls of the Jaguar assault frigate, by far the most piloted ship in my arsenal. I'm hoping that kill number 200 might be something a little more challenging, but whatever pops up on the overview next time I'm prowling the space-lanes in my big cat I sure won't deny her the feed.

In other news, just about to go hit the showers and then onto the station's bar district after standing down from a neat shield battlecruiser fleet in which there were plenty of kills on the roam: in particular this engagement standing out as the best.

I am really enjoying my new surroundings here in Molden Heath, it is great for solo roaming, as a base for roams further down the pipe, has good access to populated null-sec and is excellent for roving bc gangs and bigger, should you wish.

Here's hoping for more of the same in the near future.

MB.

Redshirt

With the impending departure of Blackwater USA (the founding corporation) from Random Violence alliance and the feeling that things had gone quite stagnant recently, I decided to have a serious think about my immediate future. About the same time, Wensley, a good friend of mine, decided it was time to tap me up and enquire as to when and not if I was going to join the ranks at Gunpoint Diplomacy [RANSM]. I was immediately sold on the idea of flying with good mates and in a close-knit group of good pilots.

This was two or three days ago and after clearing out my stuff from Syndicate and tying up some loose ends, I made my way over to Molden Heath and hit the apply button.

And I was in . . .

I am now a Redshirt, a proud one at that. I can now call on Wensley, Lt Graham, Sard Caid, Ariartus, Avan Sercedos and a few others that I will get to know better over the coming weeks, as my new wing-mates. Exciting times lie ahead!

I had only just stitched my [RANSM] patches onto my fatigues and plugged into new communication systems when the call came that hostiles were engaged with Wensley in a nearby system. I jumped into a Hurricane and was pleased that my first 30 minutes in my new corporation had resulted in a neat couple of fights in which we despatched a Hurricane, Harbinger and another Hurricane. 

_ _ _ _ _ 

I would also like to put on public record my thanks and appreciation to all the guys in The Hull Miners Union who made my last two months such an enjoyable one. It was a great chapter in my career. Here's to another great one!


MB.

New Art

One hobby of mine outside of flying spaceships, shooting up combat boosters and murdering people is collecting pieces of fine art. The banner above this very blog is a piece I acquired from the collection of famed spaceship drawder, Sassy B.

I commissioned a new piece before Christmas from Kishin Hattori, a pilot with the Tuskers pirate corporation who also shares a fondness for good art. Outside of his pirate day-job he works closely with another skilled artist who goes by the name of Bonni3. We got talking about designs and how I wanted something new and funky for my killboard, something that portrayed the ships that I regularly flew. I wanted something distinct and at the same time slightly comedic in nature.


If you take a quick peek at my killboard I hope you will agree that Kishin and Bonni3 succeeded in the goal I had set them. I would like to publicly thank them for their work and recommend them to anybody else out there who might share the same love of good art that I do.


Team Miura.

Wasted Wednesdays

I was going to write a report on last nights nano-cane roam with the Rifter Drifter crowd but my good friend Wensley has already made an excellent post which you can read by clicking this link right here.


Wensley's Wasted Wednesdays are neat and fun roams and I'd urge anybody interested to come and tag along. It is a relaxed atmosphere where new faces are always welcome, there is good banter and we don't take everything too seriously and more often than not you will always end up in a fight somewhere along the course of the evening. Also, Wensley won't admit it but he is a damned fine fleet commander who knows most null-sec regions like the back of his hand.


If you think it sounds like your cup of tea (yes, I mentioned cup of tea in my blog, cross that one off the list) then you should join the in-game channel Rifter Drifter and say hello or you can join the direct mailing list Wensley's Wasted Wednesdays.

See you in space.


MB.