First off, in the interest of full disclosure, I am a relatively new player to EvE Online. As such, I do not pretend to know about all the nuances about the game but I am very interested in learning as much as I can about all aspects of this fascinating game. What I do want to do here in this thread is to share some knowledge about how to survive in this game as a miner/hauler and how to make your experience as a new player as enjoyable as possible.
- EvE’s Universe is a HOSTILE environment.
Get used to the idea that the moment you leave the dock of any station, you may get exploded. The threat may come from either NPC pirates or real human ones - the former being more of a nuisance and the latter being the real threat.
There is NO SUCH THING AS A SAFE SPACE outside of a station. Honestly, there is nothing wrong with this concept; in fact, I would argue, this one fact makes EvE far more interesting than any other MMORPG.
- Hi-SEC IS NOT A SAFE SPACE.
Disabuse yourself of any pre-conceived notion that Hi-SEC space is safe and that you are immune or should be immune from being attacked. Other players, if they should so choose, for whatever reason, can explode your ship or bump your ship or scan your ship or whatever. If they actually attack you, CONCORD will probably intervene AFTER the fact. This is perfectly fine as in real life, the police do not respond to a “crime” until after it has been committed. Think about this for a moment: a crime isn’t a crime until after it has been committed.
- NO ONE OWNS ANY SPACE THAT THEY AREN’T WILLING TO FIGHT FOR.
One night, I came across an exploded moon full of delicious rare ores. So, heh, got to get me some of that stuff, right? So I happily began to grab my share of the goodies - do note that this moon was popped in a Hi-Sec system. Now, the first thing that happened was that I got targeted by a mining barge.
Like seriously - a mining barge…?
In local chat the owner of the barge started complaining (he was quite upset) that I was stealing his rocks. His rocks? There is NO SUCH THING as “his rocks”. Anything in EvE that is in open space that you can lay claim is up for grabs by anyone unless you are willing to fight for it - as in put your “life” on the line. So he soon discovered, after trying to bump my Venture with his barge that it was a futile exercise.
Ventures, are really nice and maneuverable and a lot more nimble than any barge.
So he goes and gets his Asteros - fancy expensive ship as I understand it, but go ahead, shoot me if you dare… make my day and rich as I could sell my kill rights ^^
And of course he didn’t so I took what I wanted from “his” rocks (about 5 loads) and left. Please note that I took no hostile action nor did I respond to his verbal attacks; in fact he placed a measly bounty on my character; so not only was he a coward but a cheap one too. So in point of fact, this veteran player was owned by a noob flying a 2m ISK Venture.
The point is COWARDICE reaps its own rewards. Every rock is up for grabs by anybody for any reason. It ain’t yours if it is still in space. If you want to lay claim to it, either put it in your hold or fight for it as otherwise it is fair game. Resources in space belongs to EVERYONE; including players who belongs to the CODE confederation.
- CODE IS A PART OF THE EVE ECO-SYSTEM
Some players choose to be miners / industrialists / haulers others choose more nefarious styles of game play such as being pirates / gang-bangers or whatever. Playing the “bad guy” is not a reflection on their actual personalities or r/l moral choices. We don’t know (or care) what they are like in real life; it doesn’t matter, they have just chosen a particular style of play and are a legitimate part of the game eco-system.
I would also argue that they actually contribute positively to the overall eco-system by making Hi-Sec space not safe. EvE’s universe is designed to be potentially an extremely hostile environment and that is what makes EvE unique and fun.
Mining in itself is BORING but being a new comer, it is a very good way to build up one’s future war funds in a comparatively safe and easy manner. The fact that there are hostile players out there makes it much more exciting and interesting. I LOVE the fact that the moment I leave a station I have to be on high alert for potential threats. It HELPS ME learn the skills that I know I will need in this game to become really good at it; and honestly, it is entirely thanks to players who are willing to put their assets and time “on the line” to make Hi-Sec space unsafe and hostile.
Pirate rats are boring, they serve at best to provide some nice loot and distraction from mining but can easily be swatted away like flies. You can’t do this with real player threats; since in a mining ship you can’t really fight them. Therefore, it forces you to develop good defensive stratagems and build better fits. All these skills are needed if you ever want to be good at this game.
EvE IS NOT AN IDLE CLICKER GAME !!!
Honestly, I groan whenever my corps mates report that their expensive mining ships got exploded. And why did they get exploded? Because, generally they were either built wrong (not enough defenses) or they were AFK farming. Or simply bad strategy - having no plan or making no plans for potential hostile actions by other players.
AFK farming; are you serious? In a hostile environment and you’re AFK? Hell, you deserved to be exploded methinks.
Hauling an expensive load and using the auto-pilot? What are you an idiot?
- EvE is about the SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST
Nothing kills you faster in EvE than stupidity. There are counters for almost anything. Build your ships better, learn to fly them better, research and plan your routes, learn the strategies for success and survival. Like any other complex game, EvE does have a high learning curve. There is no such thing as “safe” hauling or mining if you don’t learn how to do it right. Then there are psychological games too, CODE being the classic example or this type of play. Often, they have half won their fights without firing a shot because in many instances, they have already won the psychological game.
I see so many threads (and hear a lot of complaints in corp chat) about being bumped whilst mining.
Bumping is a LEGITIMATE game tactic; it is NOT GRIEFING OR HARASSMENT - further, there are counter measures to being bumped and these include, but not limited to the following:
a. Keep moving perhaps? Not being a stationary target could help…
b. Fit a Higgs Anchor perhaps? These don’t cost much the last time I checked…
c. Don’t be mining in the same places all the time? Folks, seriously, there is a huge universe out there and there are so many systems with rich mining belts with almost zero miners.
d. In order to be able to bump you, they need to find you first. This should be pretty obvious but apparently, for many miners, this simple fact doesn’t seem to appear in their thinking…
- EvE gives you ALL the tools you need to survive and thrive. Learn what these are and use them. On a basic level the minimum required is to learn how to use local chat and D-Scan to assess likely threats. There is also plenty of intelligence gathering tools in-game to help you figure out where to go to mine in relative safety.
The pirates and the CODE players objective it to hunt you and kill you - this is part of the game. Your “job” is to prevent your ship from being exploded and come back to the station and laugh all the way to the bank. It’s the nature of the game, it is how this eco-system works; if you don’t like it, play another game.
On the other hand, if you learn to embrace the true nature of EvE, it is the BEST MMORPG ever. There is so much to learn and do. Somethings will work other things won’t; you can constantly be learning and developing as a player regardless of your play style choices. But best of all, you can play this game your way. Wherein it is true that the actions of others may dictate some of the choices that you may have to make, that does not in anyway otherwise prevent you from developing successful stratagems for success.
- THE ULTIMATE RECIPES FOR SUCCESS
If there is one thing I have noticed about the best players in EvE, based on my limited in-game experiences, plus reading the forums, watching videos on YouTube or reading articles on the many sites with EvE related articles it is this: the best players in EvE DON’T BITCH or WHINE.
Instead, they ADAPT to the environment that is EVE. They make their own spaces and play on their own terms. Seriously, it really is about the “Survival of the Fittest”; which is what makes EvE exciting, interesting and different. It really does challenge you to be at your very best and in the final analysis, it is this one fact that makes EvE worth playing.
Plus if you really think about it, there are hardly any truly toxic players unlike what you find too often in other MMORPGs these days.
So to re-emphasize this last point to my fellow miner players out there, pirates and CODE players are not your run of the mill gankers and griefers that you find in other games. They are a legitimate and necessary part of the EvE eco-system. Without their efforts, mining and hauling would be REALLY BORING; plus by exploding your ship and their own, it is an integral part of the game economy. You can play on their terms, or dictate your own and being willing to fight to play on your own terms. Honestly, they make Hi-sec space for me exciting and vibrant plus they generally do a good job of removing AFKers and especially bots.
EvE is to be actively played the moment you leave a station and that means you could lose your ship regardless of whatever precautionary steps you may take. EvE is about learning how to take great risks to achieving great rewards. There is no such thing as a free lunch in EvE…
So, in closing some final tips I learned:
a. Learn how to fly your ship and master it. Seriously, I can get my Venture 0 m away from an asteroid and still be aligned for a quick escape.
b. Don’t fly what you don’t want to or cannot afford to lose.
c. Learn to fit your ships to fly in a HOSTILE environment.
d. Learn the skills needed to survive and thrive in EvE.
e. Learn how to fly aggressively and defensively. Mining ships are pretty good for bumping too or, if fitted properly, can easily bounce off a bumper.
f. Even if you have no interest in PvP (which is perfectly legitimate) , at least learn enough about PvP in order to be able to survive an attack.
g. Many PvP fights are won even before the first shot is fired. Be aware of the “mind games”; also, he who shoots first usually wins. If you’re going to kill someone, don’t hold back. Shoot first and worry about the consequences later…
h. Don’t be stupid; nothing kills you faster than doing stupid things.
i. Have a plan and a contingency plan and a contingency plan for the contingency plan before you exit any station; just saying…
Final thought:
YOU HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO MINE/HAUL ANYWHERE IN HI-SEC BUT PIRATES AND CODE HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO EXPLODE YOUR SORRY BEHIND IF THEY CAN FIND YOU - GET USED TO THIS CONCEPT.
