Vote Xenuria

[Xenuria]

@Othello_Warspite

Five questions regarding highsec and what you would tell CCP if elected:

1. Is there anything CCP can or should do to reduce the level of crowding in highsec, without breaking the sandbox nature of the game?

2. If the current reward structure is not sufficient to encourage people to spread out into low and null, is this purely on the players, or does CCP need to take a deeper look at why players are not doing so?

3. It seems to me that the average highsec player is more engaged with their friends than with CCP or the political game within EVE. How can CCP engage these players better?

4. Is there anything CCP could and should do to assist new players in attempting PVP for the first time? Being in a noobcorp for a long time, I repeatedly hear “I’m not going to try that until I have enough skills”.

5. Is it a problem that the highsec PVE meta is heavily centered around drones in general, and progressively more towards the Gila, and if so, how would you suggest CCP respond?

1. I was unaware that high sec was crowded, I am fairly certain there are hundreds of high sec systems with less than 10 people in them at any given time. Can you be more specific?

2. Some players are perfectly happy in high sec and have no desire at all to leave high sec. I don’t see this as a problem and even if it was a problem the solution is moving jita to null sec. This is something goonswarm is making rapid progress with, delve has become a heart of industry and resource gathering.

3. Many people in high sec are casual players who have no desire to read the forums, post on reddit, talk in discord/mumble/teamspeak or otherwise expand outward socially. I don’t think CCP should force people to grow, I think growth should be behaviorally incentivized. Methods of doing this are varied depending on the aspect of growth you want to focus on. I think the new NSA dial being added later on this month is going to show players what they are missing out on.

4. PVP only requires skill in so far as you need skills to use some hulls or fittings. The actual Skill~ of pvp is something learned from observation, participation and study.

5. Drones were supposed to be considered a primary damage dealer like rails or rockets, then something happened in terms of balance where CCP was worried about power creep. People in high sec use drones often because they are easy and do most of the work but this was countered by the aggression changes and ai changes. The gila and rattlesnake are examples of how drone balance was given a band-aid. Instead of going over how drone ai works, it’s damage output and so on they just made it so those ships can’t use more than a given amount of drones. CCP needs to decide if they want drones to be a primary damage type or not and then after that make changes to how they work in this context.

[Alaric_Faelen]

Xenuria gets my top vote, even when he doesn’t run for office. Perhaps especially then.

[Othello_Warspite]

Thank you for taking the time to respond!

1. I guess crowding is a relative matter. When I was a new player, I went into null on my own a few times, and there just was never anyone about. Now, when I go back with NPSI fleets, it’s always a large number of systems with 0-2 people. in system, before we come across anywhere there might be something to engage. There are a small number of dead-ish spots in highsec, but on a comparative basis, it’s hugely populated. I wouldn’t say it is a problem for the health of the game, but at the same time, there is a point where the density is probably too great. I think there’s a fair bit of room yet, but what I would not like to see is for the population to overshoot the ability of the highsec ecosystem to support active players.

2. I guess I’m more wondering about whether the high % of players not involved in the space empire narrative that is a staple of CCP advertising is a player matter (I know in a few cases it’s definitely about player-player interactions), or whether CCP needs to look deeper into mechanics, logistics, whatever to facilitate more engagement with a primary game feature.

3. Very true. The question I run into is “how do you get players over that initial hurdle of feeling inadequate?” I’ve tried (with newer players who bring up PVP on day one) showing them that kills can be had with hull/weapons trained to 1, offered frigates for 0 isk, and even invited then to Corvette fleets. It seldom gets them past the “you’re not trained enough” hurdle. I don’t know what else I can do as an individual, but it feels like as a gaming community, we’re missing a big opportunity to mold some newbros into serial podders.

[Xenuria]

It’s almost time now.

[Gulmuk]

If I was going to vote for you. You should probably include some info about HOW you are going to make EVE a better place. Not all this stuff you just said.

[Xenuria]

Please see the first post in the thread, it’s the one at the very top. It has interviews linked that go into granular detail.

[BenTheMemeMachine_Bernanke]

I voted the Imperium ticket, but I wish you luck!

[Xenuria]

Thank you, with recent events I might just have a better chance.