The Independent Analyst

Once again CrazyKinux has put out the call, and this months topic is a bit introspective:

The first banter of 2010 comes to us from the EVE Blog Father, in which I ask the following: As we begin another year in New Eden, ask yourselves “What Now?” What will I attempt next? What haven’t I done so far in EVE? Was it out fear, funds, or knowledge? Have I always wanted to start my own corporation, but have never dared doing so? Is there a fledging mercenary waiting to come out of its shell? Or maybe an Industrialist? What steps and objectives will I set myself to accomplish in order to reach my ultimate goal for this year? EVE is what you make of it. So, what is it going to be for you?

I have 4 major goals for this year:

1. Lose more ships

I know that this seems like a counterproductive goal, but what I am really trying to say here is that I need to “finish” fights. Too many times I have bailed on a fight when I was about to hit structure, even if my opponent was equally matched. A common saying is that “you can learn just as much from a defeat as a victory”, I need to stop worrying about my Kill to Death ratio and put my ship on the line.

2. More involvement in capital warfare

I celebrated the new year by purchasing a Thanatos for my capital alt. This is my first capital ship and I am anxious to put it into service. I have seen many cynos and many capitals, but jumping the carrier from the station I purchased it from to it’s current home station was still a little thrill. The Gallente Militia now has a decent capital fleet, and we are not afraid to use it when the opportunity arises.

A secondary capital goal is to train for and purchase a dread. It took a year for me to properly train for a carrier, hopefully it won’t take as long for me to train for a dreadnaught.

3. More time in the FC chair

In the past I have led small roaming gangs, been a secondary target caller, and taken over temporarily for FC’s of larger fleets. Despite this experience I still have not purposefully led a Battleship fleet of my own. I am not a bold person, and I prefer to be in the back of the crowd, but I know the technical aspects of the game very well. It is my hope that forcing myself to start fleets and take command will help me to gain some confidence in my abilities.

4. FRAPS everything

FRAPS is great for making “look how awesome we are” videos to put on eve-files, but it is also extremely useful as a “gun camera” for reviewing fights. PVP in Eve is very fast and hectic. The ability to review what you did after a battle and spot your mistakes is a great way to improve your PVP abilities. I bought a terabyte drive specifically for recording FRAPS, but I rarely have it on. This year, if I’m undocked, FRAPS is running.