Saturday, January 4, 2014

Waiting For I Know Not What…

~or, “What Does the Other Shoe Sound Like?”

Mabrick put a very fine point on a feeling I have had rambling round my brain a while now…  In his latest post, “CY 116 - Resolutions Required”, Mab opines on the current state of affairs in New Eden. How things ingame for him feel sorta outasorts… in suspension… unsure as twere… meaning he is not sure where his gameplay is going now, where his focus is.

He talks about the early years as a solo industrialist, then with HBHI in our old C3, then how we were all in SYJ Alliance in a C6, then even a, short and unfulfilling, piece of time in NPC null and most recently back to an NPC corp running SOE mishes in Hisec… now he’s sorta biding his time wondering what’s next.

To the point he says,” But this year, I have no idea what I'm going to do. I'm simply marking time by running missions for the Sisters of Eve. It's like I'm waiting for the next shoe to drop. I'm not fond of the feeling.” and ”I don't believe I am alone in this feeling. I have suspicions that others may be flying a holding pattern as well. It's really more like a gut feeling, but it's one I can't shake.

Well, he’s right… he’s not alone. I too feel like I am waiting for something to happen. Now his post is really about CCP, the metagame and what’s the Next Big Thing from the Creators and Gods of New Eden… how we have only hints about Project #2 and #3… leaving us to assume Project #1, the First Shoe, may have been Rubicon… Good post that.

HBHI had run a pretty sweet progression in our first almost years. We started similar to many, as Hisec noobs. Eventually we joined DemSal Alliance… Then we found wormholes and in time anchored our first POS inna C2. Then we were on our own inna C3 where we eventually joined SYJ and moved to Bastion, the Alliance C6, where the downsides were vastly offset for most of us by the upsides. C6 ISK, fleet roams and Merc Ops… and Strength in Numbers…

Then as those of you who follow this and Mabs blogs know, wormholes died (meaning a large number of the biggest Anoikii Alliances failscaded) so SYJ closed up shop (at least the US TZ players did) and headed out  to be The Next Big Thing in (first) NPC Null then (second) in Lowsec… and the general consensus in HBHI was no thanx. None of us are really null or lowsec players. We are and want to remain, Anoikis Mercs… Wormholers by trade and inclination… so HBHI left Bastion, took down Serenity Station once again and moved back to Hisec while we regrouped and planned what to do next.

In the course of this, again as some of you know, HBHI internally has gone through some changes… Mab left to pursue the solo-industry-bear life again and build the new White Ships of the SOE, Mikey corp hopped to a wormhole Alliance in lower class holes like he wanted, AI (our old CEO and my son) was stationed in Korea… (+14 HOUR TZ change, sheesh), Strigon has been working nights and I had some RL>EVE shit going on… and still do(ish)…

So, we have always been a small corp of a few tight friends who share a playstyle. .. the Directors are RL friends and family  and the members are all guys we have known a long time… and in EvE even that is no guarantee of trust. One guy would have trusted as far as anyone I had met ingame pulled a 50+ Billion ISK corp theft on a group of very good friends we had all known for a long time… well, it’s EvE right?

It is very much this kind of thing that is why the Directors of HBHI have always kept us small. And that can be problematic in New Eden… there is strength in numbers and we simply don’t have that, and probably never will. So, that’s us inna nutshell. So where are we now? Well, as Mab said, simply marking time like we’re waiting for the next shoe to drop. Can’t say I’m fond of the feeling either.

So I have been logging on less, posting less and playing less than ever in my 3 years. And when I am on I don’t know what to do with myself… Missions suck, I have been hole diving, but solo it is very problematic, and risky… and I am not making the kinda ISK one needs to put a Sites fit Loki or Tengu on the line for C1 or C2 ISK, not solo at least. And I can’t really ask one of the guys to pair up as my online time is simply too unreliable ATM to put another’s gameplay at risk…

Mab kinda hit it on the head… I feel like I am waiting on something… like there’s something in the wind, or a quiet before a storm. Man I hope so.. I really do… ‘cause I hate this waiting with no idea what I am waiting for.


Fly Wreckless and see you in the Sky  =/|)=

6 comments:

  1. Maybe what you could do is go on a recruiting drive and start building up your corp into a new merc corp. Don't offer anyone access to to the corp hangar (or allow access in line with what you're comfortable with). Or, if you don't want to do that, you could team up with a couple of other corps and become a merc alliance while still keeping your corp small but still in control.

    Either way, it's better for you to make your own fun than it is to wait for whatever CCP has in store to be announced. Better to be having fun now and keep having fun after they announce THE NEXT BIG THING!!#!@! because if it doesn't live up to the hype in your eyes, then at least you're still having fun. Otherwise, you'll still be stuck with the "Meh's".

    It sounds to me like you guys have lost and/or met your goals and need a new one to work toward as a corp.

    - Baljos Arnjak

    ReplyDelete
  2. Baljos, Oh believe me, I and we have thought long and hard on that one... The problem with building HBHI is as stated, 2fold... Trust in EvE and Online Time. I trust NO ONE except my sons and the three of us have highly curtailed playtime ATM, neither of which really give us the ability to reliably grow our corp or create and grow an Alliance, especially a Merc Alliance, not one with the kind of connections, abilities and manpower we had w/ SYJ.

    Buy yea... waiting on CCP to do something yo make my game is kinda stoopid sounding aint it? I mean, if we are waiting on CCP considering their track record, well... LOL

    EvE is what we make of it I suppose... I and many others I feel, would however, really like it if they gave some real thought to the PvE content of their game for those of us who WANT to play but have limited time. It's all well and fine to focus on PvP and group play and the social aspects of EvE, however, if CCP wants maximum subscriptions, they need to cater to all playstyles... Large group, small gang and solo.

    And yes, the core of it is a goal... we need sommathat... =]

    ReplyDelete
  3. Well, what can I say? These little incremental content patches like Rubicon are a direct result of CCP abandoning "Jesus features". What do we want? Walking in station that doesn't work or deployable structures that do?

    As for your High Sec Blues - we talked about this in-game. Offer stands. What else can I say? :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. LOL... Epi, I want it all!! I want the ship rebalancing, I want the rest of the new deployables, I want the POS changes AND I want a WORKING WiS...

    I want to hack into a Ghost Site in my Wittle White Ship and then, instead of a lewt spew, I want to BOARD that research station and fight off the Guristas (and mebbe even other Empyreans!!) and find the lewts myself!!!! I want it ALL!!! LOL

    As I have been made CEO of HBHI I find it has changed my take on our little corp... sitting in the Big Chair is very different from being just a line troop or even a Director. Plus, as said, very limited online time is a bich..We are talking to an Anoikis Alliance that looks to be a good fit, but I am not sure we can reliably support a POS ATM...

    And, while it sux compared to W=space ISK,I ran 3 SOE L4s last night and netted 80+ mISK... actually not too shabby for hisec. Hell, 8 nights like that I can can afford another T3... plus I am skilling into Bastion tanking cause, TBH, it just takes too damn long even inna T3...

    And your offer is still on the table in my head... not counting anything out just yet... and it is, as you well know, appreciated.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Tur I think what you want is actually being developed this year .. "Star Citizen". :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. I just might check out SC when it goes live... but TBH, the ONLY MMO I have EVER enjoyed at all is EvE and I have tried MANY... especially the SciFi based ones and nottaone came anywhere close to fulfilling my dreams of a proper virtual life in a space based future. Plus, I really am a one game guy... just get too involved to really dive my time up over multiople gaming experiences... I simply cannot game-a-tois... =]

    That's partly why I get kinda blue over not having a focus, goal and direction right now in game... I only really wanna play EvE... ah well... =]

    ReplyDelete

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